Operation: Revive The Princess Discontinued
by Eternity Crystal
Summary: Tohru and everyone are in their third year, so that mean's graduation's coming up. Tohru's worried about Kyo's confinement, but everything changes when Tohru loses her memory. She changes schools and leaves Shigure's. She comes back, but with a boyfriend!
1. Graduation

**Operation: Revive The Princess**

**_Graduation_**

**(A/N: Well, this is my first story I've published on here, and it's been a while since I've actually written a Fruits Basket story, so I apologize ahead of time if some [or all of the characters are out of character, but I tried very hard. Well, I hope you enjoy this first chapter of the story!)**

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"Graduation is still quite a ways off, huh? Man, it sucks," a teenage girl complained, her dyed blonde hair falling carelessly past her shoulders, and tilted herself backward by pushing her feet against the desk in front of her. Uotani Arisa, seventeen-years-old, third year student, former delinquent, and best friends with one of the sweetest girls in the world. Her best friend's name? Honda Tohru. 

Honda Tohru; brunette whose hair reached near her waist in length, deep (and kind) brown eyes, seventeen-years-old, also a third year student, and a resident of a house with three men. Two of those men were Honda Tohru's age and in the same class even. Unusual pair they were; cousins, despised each other with a fiery passion, odd colored hair and eyes, and very protective of the woman of their household. _Extremely_ protective. Though, so were Honda's Tohru's two best friends: Uotani Arisa and Hanajima Saki.

Hanajima Saki was an unusual girl to say the least; Saki could read people's emotions and the like through waves, and due to incidents in the past involving this ability, she always wore black when out of her uniform and forever kept her nails painted black. Monotonous at times, calm, long and black (often braided) hair, matching eyes, seventeen-years old, a third year student at Kaibara High School, and quite protective of Honda Tohru. A painfully pleasant topic to Hanajima Saki. Happy because Saki and Tohru were the best of friends, but painful because the two girls scarcely hung out with each other lately. It was obvious that it was the Sohmas behind that; they were the ones Honda Tohru hung out with more than frequently. Especially Sohma Kyo.

Sohma Kyo; short orange hair and orange eyes, seventeen-years old, third year student, and a house mate of Honda Tohru's. Perhaps the most protective of the brunette of anybody alive. Violent (and short) temper which caused him to yell frequently. He was better at controlling it now, much better. Though that didn't mean he never said angered and slightly mean things still. Kyo was merely better at his volume control, and slightly better at keeping his temper at bay. One could say that that fact was partly due to Honda Tohru, and they would be correct in that statement. It was obvious that it was Tohru's influence on Kyo that melted away the temper, but Sohma Kyo also had an effect upon Tohru as well.

It was obvious to even an idiot that Sohma Kyo and Honda Tohru were in love. Everyone knew it with the exception of a few people, who were just morons. Not including the couple themselves, they were just dense. Really, really dense. But being dense did not necessarily make someone a moron as such as the case with Kyo and Tohru.

Anyway, the two, along with Sohma "Prince" Yuki (most popular boy in school, silvery gray chin length hair with silvery eyes, student body president, always arguing with his cousin Sohma Kyo) and Sohma Shigure (black haired and blackish eyed twenty-eight-year-old novelist who was Kyo, Yuki, and Tohru's guardian) lived under the same roof. Due to the clashing personalities of the Sohma (and Honda) household, Kyo and Tohru _wouldn't_ be allowed to do certain things as a couple, mostly because of the perverted remarks that Shigure would make, much less confess their overwhelming feelings to each other. It was also their situations and mental condition that prevent either from admitting their feelings to both each other and themselves. That brings us to Tohru's reply to Uotani's Arisa's complaint.

Honda Tohru's soothingly bright smile faltered, her brown eyes drooped; her facial features took on an overall serious, almost longingly sad look. That, though, was quickly covered up by another one of Tohru's smiles. Only those well versed in Honda Tohru's behavior would catch the upset look and know she was troubled. And, of course, this caused concern to flare up in her friends, which was intensified by Tohru's verbal response.

"That's right…we'll be graduating this year!" Tohru exclaimed, sounding thrilled, though her eyes showed otherwise. Now they figured out Tohru's problem was tied with graduation.

Across the room, unable to hear the discussion only taking place by Arisa and Tohru, was Sohma Kyo sitting comfortably as could be on the cold, hard desk that was his own. His orange eyes were dull as Kyo stared off into space, lost in his thoughts. Eventually his mind too wondered to graduation; something that was usually a merry, exciting event was dark and haunting to Sohma Kyo. He did not want to leave. He _especially_ didn't want to leave _her_. The brunette standing across the room from him, chattering away in her usual optimistic way. Only, there was something slightly off, though, and, at this point, Kyo couldn't be exactly sure what or why that was. What he _did_ know was that it wasn't a good thing.

Kyo then jumped off his desk, and walked over to the group of girls. Announcing his presence, Kyo lightly conked Tohru o the head with a clenched fist. Tohru turned around, a hand placed on her head where Kyo had hit her, and started laughing. Kyo looked down at Tohru, smiling serenely at her with a raised and furrowed eyebrow; his expression questioning Tohru's sanity. Both of them tried not to think about the fate rushing toward them like a speeding train. Instead, they tried to focus on the time they could spend together before that train slammed into them.

Sohma Kyo made a bet with Akito soon after arriving from his four-month trip to the mountains. Shouting and threats past and soon Akito offered a deal; if Kyo could beat Yuki in a fight by the time he graduated high school, he would no longer be called a monster and possibly let the cat join the Zodiac, but if he couldn't, Kyo would be confined in the room set aside for those cursed by the cat for the rest of his life. As if he would win, and Kyo knew it. There was another reason he wanted to beat Yuki so bad, but he refused to let his mind wander to that.

The door to the classroom clattered open, and a foot stepped forward toward the inside of the classroom. The student paused. Sohma Yuki took a moment to observe the cluster of friends by the windows, talking and laughing away. A small smile crossed Yuki's face as he stepped all the way into the classroom, closing the door behind him. He made his way over to the group and joined in on the conversation until class, unfortunately, started.

"Shigure-san! We're home!" Tohru called out from the doorway as she carefully removed her shoes from her feet.

"Weeelllcome hooooome!" Sohma Shigure cried, leaping toward the entrance, more specifically, toward Tohru, before Kyo whacked his cousin on the head.

"Don't you ever stop?" Kyo asked with annoyed exasperation.

Yuki sighed and walked off to his room, he had gotten used to this overly energetic greeting from his older cousin. The only reason why Kyo didn't was because Shigure always seemed to aim his attacks at Tohru, and he always protected Tohru, so prevented Shigure from hugging Tohru, which also prevented him from activating his curse, though it didn't really matter since Tohru knew about the curse. Kyo then walked off after his job was done, and left a concerned Tohru to look after a bruised adult. Everything was perfectly normal.

Tohru quickly changed out of her dark blue uniform, and hurried downstairs. Tohru got down with her homework, so she could go straight to the kitchen once she was done with it, or when dinner time arose. As the female of the household struggled with her schoolwork, thoughts crept into her head. Thoughts about school, Kyo, friends, Kyo, graduation, and…Kyo's confinement. After Kyo had graduated high school, he would be locked in one dark, secluded room for the rest of his life. _The rest of his life_ he would never see anyone other than his captor until he died. This meant that Tohru wouldn't be able to see him again. Ever.

Those thoughts swam around in Tohru's mind, and tears began to fall. She let go of her pencil that had long since stopped writing, and tried to furiously wipe away her tears. She failed miserably. She kept on crying. It was just so sad to think about; Kyo leaving, unable to talk to or see again, to not be able to be near him, to hear his laugh, to see him smile, for all that to vanish and never return. It was tearing her apart it was so sad. Yet, she couldn't do anything to stop it, she…

"Tohru," a voice said, sounding from directly behind Tohru.

"Whaaa!" Tohru jumped. Slowly, her head revolved to glance behind her to notice a slightly startled Sohma Kyo. After blinking a couple of times, Kyo's tense body relaxed, and he sat down next to Tohru with a concerned look on his face. Tohru stared at him in awe as Kyo reached out a hand to wipe some of Tohru's lagging tears away.

"What's wrong?" Kyo asked, finally voicing his concern.

"Ah, n-n-nothing! Nothing's wrong!" Tohru denied, as she always did. She didn't want to make anybody worry, _especially_ Kyo.

"Heh, that's not what your _face_ is saying," Kyo replied, unable to help the corner of his mouth twitch into a small smile. Tohru stuttered out attempts of a response, but that was rendered impossible due to the lack of knowing what to say. Kyo chuckled; Tohru was so _cute_ babbling like an idiot like that. Kyo caught himself, and scolded himself for thinking that. He refused to think like that.

Once Tohru had calmed down enough, she abruptly jumped to her feet, a determined smile on her face. "What would you like for dinner, Kyo-kun?" Tohru asked, smiling down at her orange haired house mate, who was still smiling pleasantly at the brunette despite the thoughts running through his mind.

"Shougayaki," another voice cut in. Kyo and Tohru paused at the sound of the duller, more apathetic voice resound through the room. Slowly, they turned to face two more people in the doorway. The one who had spoken was a boy only a year younger than the surprised couple, and his hair went from white on the top to black at his roots that accompanied his cool brown eyes. Beside him was a much shorter boy, around the same age as the other, with wild blonde hair and large brown eyes, and was bouncing slightly in place. Sohma Hatsuharu and Sohma Momiji were two more cousins of Sohma Kyo, Yuki, and Shigure.

"Hatsuharu-san? Momiji-kun?" Tohru asked with a puzzled look on her face. Kyo merely stared at the unexpected guests.

"Hey," Hatsuharu said in greeting, walking further into the house.

"Tohru!" Momiji squealed with excitement, rushing toward the confused brunette. Tohru smiled as she watched the small teenager hop over to her, and the two started chatting a high speeds, at least Momiji was anyway.

"Haru," a voice said, announcing another presence. The addressed boy turned to see Yuki step off the stairs, and both of them entered the living room. "What are you doing here?"

"Ah," began Hatsuharu. "Well, Sensei was complaining about how he hadn't been receiving any visitors lately, so he invited us over."

"I see," Yuki replied in understanding, and the two then joined the other three at the table.

"Ah! I see Haa-kun and Momichi are here now," commented Shigure cheerfully as he entered the room a while after Momiji and Hatsuharu had arrived.

"Shii-chan!" Momiji called out from his spot beside Tohru, who was in between him and Kyo.

"Sensei," Haru greeted in his calm voice. Shigure smiled at them both in his usual goofy manner.

"So what's for dinner, Tohru-kun?" Shigure asked as he joined the others. Tohru's eyes widened and abruptly rose to her feet again, realizing she had completely forgotten about dinner.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry! I completely forgot. I'll get started right away!" Tohru declared in a panic, now forgetting to answer Shigure's question. Tohru ran off while Yuki, Momiji, and Shigure chuckled.

"Ah, Tohru-kun, Tohru-kun, what would we do without you?" Shigure asked, shaking his head from side to side, signs of his laughter still clear in his voice.

"We would be drowning in self-pity," Haru replied casually, earning himself a couple of odd stares.

A while later, Tohru came back with the deliciously prepared shougayaki, which Haru was pleased about since it was his request that had been fulfilled. Pleasant conversation passed at the table during and after the meal. Eventually the guests went home, and he others went off to do their own thing. Kyo went up to the roof, Yuki retreated back into his room, Shigure left for his study to do who knows what, and Tohru followed after Kyo. Tohru found Kyo lying back with his hands underneath his head, staring up at the sky. Kyo noticed Tohru on the ladder leading up to the roof, and smiled as Tohru approached him further.

"Hey," Kyo greeted casually as Tohru made her way over to him. Tohru gave him her regular cheerful smile that seemed a tiny more cheerful than normal, often how it was when the two were alone.

"Hello, Kyo-kun," Tohru replied with her voice the same tone as her smile.

"What're you doing up here?" Kyo asked while pushing himself into a sitting position so he could look at Tohru's beaming face properly.

"I was just curious as to how you were doing, Kyo-kun," Tohru answered in her usual polite manner.

"Heh. I don't think my mood's really changed since dinner, considering it was only a few minutes ago," Kyo replied with a chuckle. Tohru blushed a light pink, and slightly turned her head away.

"S-sorry," Tohru mumbled.

"No need to apologize, Tohru," Kyo cooed, causing Tohru to look back at Kyo's gently smiling face. Tohru smiled, and it was Kyo's turn to blush.

"Okay," Tohru replied scooting ever more closely to the boy on the roof. The pair then stared at the orange sunset sinking beneath the horizon.

"Say, Kyo-kun?" Tohru asked in a near whisper when the first stars started sprinkling the sky.

"Mm?"

"Are you…excited about graduation?" she asked, voice quieting even further. Tohru already knew the answer, but she just had to ask.

"Kyo's eyes narrowed, not at Tohru, but at the thought of graduation. After Kyo graduated, he would be locked away, unable to see Tohru's smiling face for the rest of his miserable, cursed life. Of course, he assumed Tohru had no idea of his confinement, which, incidentally, she actually did, so Kyo sighed and laid back down on the roof, staring up at the darkening sky.

"Not really," he answered apathetically. Tohru made a small noise of understanding, and pulled her legs closer to her body and looked up at the peaceful night sky freckled with shining stars. Kyo blinked. Did Tohru just _agree_ with him? It may have been subtle, but it definitely happened. Wouldn't Tohru be excited about graduating and fulfilling her last promise to her mother? Kyo then just assumed Tohru was anxious about the future, her life after high school.

That was all true, but Tohru was _more_ concerned about _Kyo_ and what lay in store for him. It was a painful future, all right, and the both of them knew it. They also knew that there was nothing they could do about it no matter how hard they tried, but Tohru was unwilling to give up. Kyo had already resigned himself to his fate, but what he really cared about was spending as much time together with Tohru as possible. After all, no matter how many times he tried to deny it and push it to the back of his mind, he loved her more than anything else, even life itself, which wasn't all that hard, considering how bad his life was in general. Still, he loved Tohru, and that was all that mattered.

"Tohru," Kyo started, turning on his side to look at the brunette beside him again. Tohru turned to look at him with innocent curiosity. "Listen, there's something I need to tell-"

Kyo was cut off as he watched Tohru begin to slide down the roof. In his internal panic, Kyo reached out and grabbed Tohru's arm to prevent her from completely slipping off the roof. Kyo sighed in relief. Kyo yanked Tohru up, but apparently too much strength because Tohru fell forward toward Kyo and landed on him. There was a cloud of orange smoke. When it dissipated, what could be seen was Tohru lying on top of a squished orange cat.

"Damn curse," the cat muttered in irritation. Tohru immediately got off the cat, and started apologizing at a thousand miles per second. The cat, Kyo, sighed and told Tohru to calm down, which she eventually did. So, now the two sat with Kyo on Tohru's lap staring at the sky.

"So, Kyo-kun, what was it that you wanted to tell me?" Tohru asked, smiling down at Kyo. Kyo didn't meet her gaze.

"Never mind. It's nothing important," Kyo grumbled. On the contrary, what he wanted to say _was_ important, but the moment was ruined. Besides, he knew there would be another opportunity to tell her anyway.


	2. Mysteries and Accidents

**Operation: Revive The Princess**

**_Mysteries and Accidents_**

**(A/N: Thank you so much to my two reviewers snoopykid2991 and curlyangle! It really meant a lot for me, so this next chapter is for you guys. .Anyway, I forgot to mention that I've read all of Furuba online, so there might be spoilers or hints referring to later chapters, so I'll warn you if I bring any of that up. Oh, and one more thing that I also forgot to put in the first chapter...)**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Fruits Basket or anything along those lines. If I did...well, it wouldn't have been so great a series. Besides, I can't draw like that.**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoy this next chapter. **

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"We're off!" Tohru called out to Shigure as she, Kyo, and Yuki waited by the door so they could head towards another day of school. 

As soon as the trio received Shigure's response, they set off. The sun was out, the birds were chirping, and pleasant conversation bounced around between Kyo, Tohru, and Yuki. Of course, Kyo and Yuki argued, but it was much tamer than it used to be, thanks to Tohru. Tohru, as usual, was panicking over the argument, but stopped when she saw Uotani Arisa and Hanajima Saki up ahead. Tohru ran up to her two best friends and immediately made conversation with them. Kyo and Yuki eventually caught up.

"Hey, Prince, Orangey!" Arisa called out, addressing the two Sohma boys by their respective nicknames.

"Hello, Uotani-san," Yuki greeted respectfully while Kyo just stared off to the side in a daze, like he had come in and out of since the night before. This side of Sohma Kyo got Arisa curious.

"What's wrong with him?" Arisa asked Yuki, knowing that Kyo wouldn't give her any satisfying answers.

"To be honest, I have no clue, Uotani-san. He's been like this since last night," Yuki replied truthfully.

"What happened last night?"

"I don't know that either."

At this last set of questions and answers, both Tohru and Kyo's faced turned bright red. Arisa cocked an eyebrow at Kyo while Saki tried to pry answers (gently) out of the shy brunette. Alas, they failed. It looked like their lips were sealed tight. Well, Tohru not so much, she was just unable to get the words out. Arisa and Saki, being Tohru's best friends, would eventually know what happened anyway. Kyo, on the other hand, just flat out refused to talk. Yuki couldn't help but chuckle at this situation, which brought everybody's attention away from the mysterious occurrence of the night before, and they all entered Kaibara High.

Tohru seemed to be perfectly fine throughout the school day, appearing to have recovered from the previous night. That was more than one could say for Kyo. Every time Kyo's gaze connected with Tohru's, he would turn his head away, blushing slightly. What was his problem? Why was he so stuck on that incident? It's not like it never happened before, but, somehow, that time was just more embarrassing than the others. Maybe that was because he was about to tell Tohru something really important, but wasn't able to and therefore would have trouble bringing it up again, in case something happened like that night occurred once more. Anyway, Kyo just couldn't bring himself to look at Tohru.

"Kyo-kun," Tohru called, and Kyo finally tore his gaze from the window to notice Tohru there with a worried look on her face.

"Huh?" he asked.

"Kyo-kun, it's lunch time. Everyone's left already," she informed, still worried. After all, it wasn't like Kyo to space out like that. Well, he did it occasionally, but this spacing spell was lasting longer than usual. Kyo didn't like it when Tohru looked worried.

"Ah, so you came to get me?" Kyo asked, slight tease in his voice, as he rose from his seat.

"Y-yeah," Tohru stuttered, blushing bright red again. Kyo smirked and grabbed Tohru's hand, startling her so that she jumped.

"Let's go find them," Kyo told her as he led the girl out of the abandoned classroom.

Tohru blushed even more as the orange haired boy brought her down the hallway. She didn't mind it though. Not one bit. Tohru closed her eyes as she allowed Kyo's warmth to overtake her senses. He really was kind to her, and she never wished for that kindness to go. Before her thoughts could even return to that subject, she felt herself almost run into Kyo. Why did Kyo suddenly stop?

Tohru looked past Kyo to see what he was staring at. Tohru blinked as she laid her eyes on a _very_ large crowd surrounding the area in which they usually ate lunch. Kyo, not even bothering to try and disperse the crowd, started dragging Tohru somewhere else. Tohru made small noises of confusion, but Kyo ignored them and refused to tell Tohru what he was doing. Kyo, not wanting to let go of Tohru's hand, kicked open a door. The door to the roof, that is. As the door forced its way open, a small breeze rushed past them, ruffling their hair and clothes.

Kyo led Tohru out onto the roof and picked a spot for them to sit. Then they each took out their bentos which had been lovingly prepared by Tohru. Much eating and talking ensued, but nothing about what happened on the roof of their home was mentioned. At all. Another breeze whipped past them, and Tohru giggled. Kyo raised an eyebrow at her; why was she giggling?

"It feels so nice," Tohru explained, referring to the breeze.

Kyo stared. That soft, cool air elevated Tohru's luxuriously brown hair that twisted and twirled around her. The rays of light from the sun were reflected in her melting chocolate eyes. This image halted Kyo's breathing. Beautiful was one way to describe the girl. There he went again. Kyo shook his head in disapproval at himself.

Stopping, Kyo saw a hand come straight in front of his face, and he watched with his orange eyes the hand swoop down with wooden chopsticks. Food clenched between the chopsticks, the hand left Kyo's line of vision. Kyo looked behind him at the sound of loud munching, and that caused Tohru to look at Kyo. Then at the familiar black and white haired second year student standing behind Kyo with chopsticks lazily held in his right hand. A smile rippled across Tohru's face at the sight.

"Hatsuharu-san!" Tohru exclaimed happily. Haru finished chewing and swallowed.

"Yo," he returned. Then he went in for another bite of Kyo's lunch.

"Oi! What're you doing eating my food?!" Kyo exclaimed, whacking Haru over the head. He only lifted his head to stare at Kyo with his usual apathetic brown eyes.

"I was hungry," Haru replied as if that it explained everything. Which it did, to a certain extent.

"What are you doing up here, Hatsuharu-san?" Tohru asked conversationally. Kyo sighed in defeated exasperation.

"When the bell miraculously rang, I rushed out to find you guys. Amidst my quest in searching-"

"You got lost and so came to the roof," Kyo replied, cutting off Haru's narrative explanation. He did this to, one, stop Haru from rambling on about his cover-up for his lack of direction sense, and, two, to make if easier for Tohru to understand why Haru was on the roof.

"Uh-huh," Haru replied, accepting the shorter (and more blunt) version of his tale.

"Wow, and _how_ long have you been here, Haru?" Kyo asked.

"Two years."

"Yeah, so this proves you have absolutely _no_ sense of direction," Kyo concluded.

"My parents do though," Haru replied, not denying Kyo's deduction. "…A mystery."

"Whatever," Kyo said, losing his interest. Tohru continued to smile at Haru.

"So how's your second year at school here going so far, Hatsuharu-san?" Tohru asked. The three continued to converse and eat until the end of lunch, forgetting about the whereabouts of the others.

Coincidentally, Sohma Yuki, Sohma Momiji, Uotani Arisa, and Hanajima Saki had all gathered at the usual lunch spot. However, because Tohru had stayed behind to wake Kyo up from his daze, that caused a bunch of the Prince Yuki Fan Club girls to swarm around them. That was due to Tohru's absence and for Arisa and Saki to not particularly care because Tohru wasn't there to protect. So, all throughout lunch, the four were surrounded by a huge crowd of girls, and were left to wonder where Tohru and Kyo were. Oh, and Hatsuharu whom they had just realized was missing also.

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"Are you sure?" Tohru asked uncertain.

"Yeah, yeah. Just go, I'll meet you at home," Kyo ushered. Arisa and Saki watched with amused expressions.

For about five minutes now, Tohru and Kyo had been discussing whether or not Tohru should leave Kyo or not to clean up the classroom and go grocery shopping. Obviously, Kyo had been unsuccessful in convincing Tohru he would be fine up until now. Tohru flashed Kyo a smile, still worried whether Kyo would be alright or not, and bowed to her friends. Arisa and Saki both had to help Kyo since it was also their turn to clean. With Yuki also off at a Student Council meeting, Tohru walked by herself out of the classroom and into the semi-busy hallway. Tohru smiled to herself as she stepped out under the ever burning sun and into the refreshingly cool wind.

Cheerily standing at the corner connecting the two sidewalks, Tohru waited patiently humming to herself. The only thing on the girl's mind was the dinner she was to prepare and wondering if her "family" would like it. Finally the "walk" signal was given, and Tohru stepped onto the paved and white-striped road. She continued to hum to herself until she got the feeling that she was slightly lighter. Tohru paused, and turned around to see a tiny green book-shaped object lying on the ground. A horrified and worried look overtook her previously happy one.

"Mom!" Tohru shouted in fearful panic. Tohru quickly went to pick it up.

"Damn yankee," Kyo uttered under his breath. Arisa would always tease Kyo relentlessly, but not today. No, she had to tease him to _death_. Kyo had no idea what set her off to tease him that much more, but one thing's for sure, the teasing was annoying.

Despite that, and after all the yelling that had occurred, Kyo still managed to finish his cleaning duty early, making Arisa and Saki finish it up. So Kyo immediately set off leaving, bypassing the Student Council room without realizing, not that he would care in the first place, intent on seeing if Tohru was too far away to catch up to. She shouldn't be since it had only been six minutes since she had left. Among his hasty traveling, Kyo also ran across Hatsuharu and Momiji, who, as it turns out, had also been assigned cleaning duty that day and finished early. Ignoring the two, however, Kyo managed to reach the exit of the school.

Kyo was relieved when he saw that Tohru had only begun to cross the crosswalk. However, it was still quite far for Kyo to catch up. Since he, after all, was still in the entrance way to the school. Kyo was going to call out to Tohru when he saw Tohru drop that wallet of hers that contained a picture of her deceased mother and the same girl to twirl around to pick it back up. As the orange haired teen watched Tohru bend over, something else caught his eye.

Kyo's eyes expanded to their fullest extent and his mouth fell slightly open. Tentatively staring, Kyo saw a huge truck full of some products to deliver at some place hurdling towards the unaware brunette. His heart dropped into his stomach. Kyo, at this moment, seemed to find his voice.

"No. Not again," he whispered. "TOHRU!"

Tohru gasped as she heard her name being called. As Kyo now struggled to catch up to her, Tohru turned her head to now notice the speeding truck. She didn't even get the chance to scream.

BAM!

"_TOHRU—!_" Kyo cried as loud as he could in his absolute horror. He saw Tohru's body collide with the front of the truck, fly backwards, and hit the ground head first. Kyo's body froze, fear stopping every cell in his body. Kyo's hear sank all the way out of him and into the ground. He then rushed to the fallen girl, mind blank and unable to hear the cries of the other students who were still clearing the school building.

"Tohru!" Momiji exclaimed, just as terror stricken.

Kyo knelt down beside the unconscious girl, noticing the cluttering and seeping pool of blood from the back of Tohru's head and limbs. Tears came crashing down at an impossible rate. Kyo, in his fright, tried to gently wake up the bleeding girl, but failing. Kyo closed his eyes and felt the never ending wave of tears fall, and, consequently, fall onto Tohru's rapidly paling face. Blood continued to drain from Tohru's injured body.

"Tohru, Tohru," Kyo choked. "Why did I just stand there? Tohru!" Kyo was a howling wolf as he drowned in his agony. He only watched Tohru get hit, and now he was watching her die. No, he would _never_ allow Tohru to die.

Kyo turned his head around abruptly and his fierce glare that was much too indescribable hit the frozen students. How could they just stand there like dazed idiots? "DAMN IT, JUST CALL NINE-ONE-ONE, YOU FREAKIN' MORONS!"

At Kyo's angry shout, Haru immediately rushed back into the school. No one in that bunch had thought to bring a cell phone that day apparently. Besides, everyone was too preoccupied of being scared of Kyo; they had _never_ seen Kyo this pissed, and that was saying something. Well, seeing the girl he loved so much get run over by a truck would do it.

While Kyo stayed by Tohru, Haru frantically tore down the halls of Kaibara High. And, Haru being Haru, he got lost within the school in search for a phone. However, instead he ran into Yuki who was just walking out of the Student Council room along with the other members, their meeting freshly finished. It was a very short meeting. Yuki stared in surprise at his panting cousin who had just come skidding around the corner.

"What's wrong?" Yuki asked with concern.

"…Phone…" was the only word decipherable. Yuki adorned his puzzled expression.

"Phone?"

"Where's the…phone?"

"Why do you need a phone, Haru?" Yuki asked, positively stumped.

"Honda…Honda-san…Honda-san was run over…by a truck," Haru managed. Yuki's eyes were all the way open to express his sudden shock and fear at this terrifying news. In an instant, Yuki was in a mad dash, trying to get to the phone as soon as he possibly could, forgetting that the people surrounding him had cell phones. Haru followed right behind him.

Kyo squinted his eyes in hopes that that was going to help stop the tears. Kyo brought up his hands to wipe some of them away, but stopped when he saw them drenched in blood. Tohru's blood. Kyo let out another cry. He couldn't believe what was happening. This wasn't _supposed_ to happen. Kyo very much wanted to cradle the girl but couldn't due to his curse and out of fear of something even worse happening if he moved her. As Kyo huddled over the dying girl, Tohru's blood slowly spread over the cold ground and finally reached Tohru's wallet that was a several inches away from the top of her head. The wallet was open; contents face up in the open. Slowly, the blood trickled over onto the picture of Kyoko Honda, Tohru's mother, and stained it red forever.

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**(A/N: Sorry about getting this out a day late. I ran out of time to put it up, so I'm sorry. I don't really care if you review, because I can empathize with those who don't. So, it's up to you. Oh, and it might be a while for me to update due to big projects and stuff I have to finish. There you have it. I hope you enjoyed it. )**


	3. Memories

**(A/N: Hey! Sorry for the super long wait. It's just that I've been so busy with school work, being sick, lack of inspiration, and all that jazz. Hopefully this super long chapter makes up for it though. That's also a reason it took so long; it took _forever_ to write. I love all those who reviewed and read this, it really does make me happy. I'm also sorry for the mistakes in here, but I have just have to get this out before I go to bed. Oh, and I've already started writting the fourth chapter, but I make no promises when I get it out. Well, thanks so much for reviewing and reading again, and I hope you enjoy chapter three of _Operation: Revive The Princess_!)**

**Disclaimer: I own none of Fruits Basket. It all belongs to Natsuki Takaya. If I did, would I be fantisizing over my own characters? I think not.**

* * *

**Operation: Revive The Princess**

**_Memories_**

Tick, tock, tick, tock. Tense silence filled the room, intensifying the volume of the ticking clock high on the wall. The bright white surroundings were dimmed, only relying on the florescent lines stuck in the ceiling. Hands run through very tangled hair, held distressful faces, and fiddled with anything in their grasp. Stress — everything there screamed it.

A good portion of the cursed Zodiac, Junishi, members were there. It had been around three or so hours since most had heard about the horrific accident where their beloved Tohru was run over by the truck. It frightened them all upon hearing this, as it would to anyone that knew her even the tiniest bit.

Phoning for an ambulance, Yuki had rushed outside to see how bad Tohru had been hit. What Yuki saw was his fiery cousin weeping over a bloodied, unconscious broken body lying on the hard road. It was _way_ worse than Yuki had prepared for, way more blood than he had expected. Yuki stood in a stupor, even when Saki and Arisa pushed past him to see what was going on outside. Not a pretty sight, that was.

After the ambulance safely towed Tohru away, Yuki went to call Shigure. Shigure was struck speechless to say the least. From that point, Shigure went forth to contact the rest of the Junishi, and one can imagine how that went; Ritsu was shocked that he didn't fall into an apologizing frenzy, Kisa immediately started bawling, dropping the phone, alerting Hiro who, when told the news, merely stood stunned, Isuzu (Rin) started screaming at the top of her lungs with watering eyes, nearly causing Shigure to go deaf, Ayame was also struck speechless and only babbled incoherent sounds that escaped from his lips, Kagura was crying heavily and somewhat calmly tried to pry details from Shigure, and finally Hatori, after his momentary stupor, shakily asked what happened. When they all were informed and met at the hospital, all but Hatori bombarded Shigure with questions at screaming level. That certainly created a scene.

Eventually, a nurse reported to them all about Tohru's current condition that was still being tested, and they were all led to the waiting room to wait. Right now, the doctors were taking a break from the testing; letting people now visit the girl. Only two people at a time were allowed to visit Tohru since the room was so small, and since Kyo was already in there, they all sat and waited. No one went in with Kyo even though there was space for one other, but it would have been uncomfortable in there because they knew Kyo was so deeply in love with Tohru. That just made it plain awkward. So there they sat, tense and extremely nervous partially from the nurse's report.

Isuzu, despite her hatred of hospitals, sat there with her head hung low, teeth gritted together, and Haru had his arm around her, his hand stroking Isuzu's exposed arm. Momiji was huddled up in a chair, cuddling his knees to his chest. Kisa was still crying only with Hiro cradling her in his arm and trying to whisper comforting words to her. Ritsu was nervously glancing around the room, waiting for the slightest thing that would set him off. Shigure was staring off into space along with Hatori, Ayame fiddling with his extravagant outfit, and Yuki comforted a calming down Kagura. No matter what one was doing, each and every one was thinking about one person and their memories of that one person.

_Walking. Isuzu was determinedly walking up the steps to Shigure's house. She needed to find it, and Shigure was most likely the one who knew the solution. Isuzu heaved in a huge breath, wishing with all her heart that Shigure indeed had the answer._

_Finally, Isuzu reached the house. Walking and glancing from side to side. That was the first time she saw her, Honda Tohru sat there, folding the clean laundry with a serene smile set on her face. Isuzu felt it. She felt that irresistible pull tugging at her. Every part of that gentle girl made Isuzu feel that burning impulse. That very same impulse that she gave into only a few months later._

_Isuzu had once again gone over to Shigure's house to continue to interrogate him, convinced that he knew the answer no mater how many times he denied it. Of course, this time she visited, Isuzu had been feeling ill again. She was frequently sick, and that's why she was almost always in the hospital. As Isuzu took a few more steps into the house, vomit rose through her throat and out her mouth._

_The door clattered open, and Isuzu spun around. Her eyes widened at her mother, the one who had long since rejected her along with her father. Fear of being hurt, rejected, again, Isuzu cried out to the person whom she thought was her mother. Isuzu, in truth, was hallucinating from the weak state she was in. The last thing Isuzu remembered was a pair of arms enveloping her, holding her close until she slipped into the unconscious state of sleep._

_When Isuzu finally woke up, Tohru was there with her kind smile, once again, stuck on her face. Isuzu, upon seeing that smile, sat up abruptly. Tohru ushered her to lie down, and then went to inform Hatori that Isuzu was awake. Again that force was yanking at her. Soon enough, Hatori and Shigure came into the room._

"_Tohru-kun found you when you threw up and fainted in the living room," Shigure recounted. "After that, you turned into a horse. It was a real problem. We couldn't take you to the hospital like that, after all. So for the time being, we waited fro you to regain consciousness. Do you remember?"_

_Isuzu remembered all right, but she refused to reply._

"_Isuzu," Hatori spoke. "We're taking you to the hospital. We can't be too careful."_

"_No," Isuzu refused, remembering when her mother came to the hospital and, once and for all, abandoned her. "I won't go."_

"_Isu-" Hatori tried, but Isuzu cut him off._

"_**No! I hate hospitals!**__" Isuzu shouted._

"_Isuzu!" Hatori exclaimed upon seeing Isuzu tearing open the window, preparing to jump out of it in an attempt to escape._

_Hatori restrained her, and Isuzu struggled, loudly protesting and telling Hatori to let go of her. There a crash and another shout._

"_Isuzu-san! You-you musn't, Isuzu-san! It's dangerous…" Tohru cried in worry. Isuzu stopped struggling at that._

"_Rin," Shigure said. "Why don't you at least let them get you to the point where you can take care of your body? That's the only way you can get people to, once and for all, leave you alone. And that way, we wouldn't have to be so bothered by you."_

_After that, the three of them left, Tohru lingering long enough to cast a worried glance at Isuzu before shutting the door behind her._

_Isuzu laid back down, and bundled herself in Tohru's bed sheets. Yuki came by to tell her that Hatsuharu was still in love with her. That was both a good and bad thing. When Yuki left, she absorbed herself in her thoughts. That is, until those thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door._

"_Hello! I'm coming in." Great, just great. It just had to be __**her**__. "How are you feeling?"_

_Isuzu sat up in bed and placed her hand over her right eye._

"_Um, I'll be sleeping downstairs, so if you need anything, don't hesitate to call me. Ah! Also, I brought you some water!" Tohru continued caringly._

"_Stop it," Isuzu commanded, irritated beyond belief. "You're trying to break the curse. Stop it."_

_Tohru stared in a surprised stupor._

"_You went to ask Kazuma, didn't you?" Isuzu asked, glaring at Tohru. "What are you trying to do? Do you __**look**__**down**__ on us? Do you __**pity**__ our wretched state? _Don't bother_. We never asked for your sympathy. _Kind people should just go on living in their kind world!!_"_

_Isuzu desperately didn't want Tohru, or anyone like her for that matter, to suffer, and she knew that would happen if Tohru got anymore deeply involved with the curse. She couldn't take it if she suffered. No she wouldn't _allow_ that to happen._

"_Could it be…" Tohru's voice brought Isuzu out of her thoughts. "…that you're trying to break the curse, too, Isuzu-san?"_

"_That's none of your business!" Isuzu replied angrily. She refused. Refused to let Tohru get involved._

"_Isuzu-san…!" Tohru started, voice filled with tremendous amounts of hope._

"_**Shut up!**__" Isuzu cried, not wanting to hear what Tohru was going to ask._

"_Isuzu-san, do you know a way to undo the curse?!"_

"_Shut up! I told you we don't need your help!"_

"_Isuzu-sa-"_

"_Stay out of it. Stop interrupting!"_

"_**NO!**__" Tohru screamed uncharacteristically. Isuzu had grabbed Tohru by her sweater to get in Tohru's face a split moment before Tohru shouted this. Isuzu stared with slight surprise as Tohru continued, " I'm sorry, but __**no**__! I won't stay out of it!"_

"_Stop…" Isuzu whispered, desperation slightly slipping into her voice. "Stop screwing around!"_

"_No!" Tohru exclaimed, closing her eyes out of frustration. "Just as you have things you can't give up, Isuzu-san, so do _**I**_."_

"_Shut up!" Isuzu's volume faltered._

"_There are things I can't give up. That's why."_

"_Shut up, __**shut up**_SHUT UP!_ There isn't one! There isn't one anywhere! There isn't a way!" Isuzu cried, now sitting on the edge of the bed. "No one knows how. At this rate…! I…I don't know what to do anymore." Desperation was full-blown in her voice now._

_Isuzu's eyes started welling up. Tohru stared at Isuzu in surprise. Isuzu immediately stopped what she was doing, realizing that she was starting to cave in. In a flash, Isuzu was out of the bedroom door and down the stairs._

"_Isuzu-san!" Tohru called out._

_Isuzu sat on the cold, hard steps that led to Shigure's house with her head in her hands, crying. Amidst her tears, Isuzu felt Tohru exit the house and sit down next to her. There was a quiet moment between them where the only sound was Isuzu's sobbing. Tohru made out to touch Isuzu comfortingly, but Isuzu jerked her elbow to get Tohru to back off. Tohru tried again, and Isuzu gave in. Completely._

_Isuzu turned around and hugged her. Clung to which shattered her already-crumbling resolved shell before it deteriorated all of it altogether._

"_I don't know what to do anymore!" Isuzu croaked. "I just don't know. I can't do anything on my own…by myself."_

"_Being by yourself…" Tohru whispered, startling Isuzu. "…is scary. Being alone…is a frightening way to live."_

_Tohru looked up at the sky with tears running down her face now, too. Isuzu could feel the tears fall on her and could hear the intense pain and sadness emanating from those tears. This made Isuzu clutch Tohru even tighter. Together, the two of them cried and held each other well past sunrise._

Again, Isuzu's façade was cracking. How could Tohru, her first friend, die? It wasn't right, it just wasn't right. Isuzu's head buried itself into her hands, her long, luxurious black hair curtaining the rest of her face. Isuzu wasn't the only one reminiscing about touching Tohru moments either.

_She ran. She ran as fast as she could. Kisa had just ran away from home. The rain beat down hard on her, and she almost slipped on the wet cement. Kisa stumbled but kept going anyway. Drenched and tired, Kisa was engulfed in colored smoke. Just in time, Kisa had found a temporary shelter befitting her small tiger form. Fading footsteps echoed and drew near as her entire world turned black_.

_Kisa slowly opened her eyes when she heard a feminine voice cry out. Chatter surrounded her, and she only recognized two of the three voices. One was Yuki and the other was Hatsuharu. The third feminine voice was soft, kind, and excited. Kisa heard the girl introduced at Honda Tohru, but as Tohru reached out a loving hand to pet Kisa, Kisa went in to bite her outstretched hand. Kisa did not take to strangers well because she was frightened. Frightened that even a stranger like Tohru would _tease_ her, and she couldn't handle anymore of that. So biting was her defense, the only option to protect herself._

_After Tohru nearly fell over from the pain, the four of them all left for Shigure's house. Kisa sat in the corner of the living room as everyone dried off and Haru wrapped Tohru's injured hand. Everyone conversed as they did so._

"_So what happened to cause all this?" Yuki asked, referring to Kisa's inability to speak._

"…That_," Haru answered, debating on whether he should say it or not._

"_That?" Tohru asked curiously._

_Kisa's ears pricked up, knowing that Haru was about to explain things she didn't want anyone to hear. Her problems that she was dealing with. She would not stand for the embarrassment._

"_Teasing," Haru emphasized. Kisa quickly jumped on the table and scrambled to bit Haru on his upper arm. Haru turned to stare down at the little tiger with furrowed eyebrows._

"_That hurts. What? Are you mad? Are you telling me not to tell them things that are none of their business?...Be serious. Do you realize how much we've worried over you?" Haru asked darkly. "Your mom is out looking everywhere for you right now."_

_Kisa had enough and leapt off the table. She ran completely out of the room and soon out of the house altogether. Kisa laid there on the grass sulking and trying to get Haru's words of her mind. A soft breeze ruffled Kisa's fur and Kisa shifted slightly. A minute or two passed after that and right before…_

"_Kisa-san!" a voice exclaimed. Kisa jumped startled from the sudden greeting that came from fright behind her. "So here you are. Thank goodness! Kisa-sa-"_

_Tohru was once again cut off when Kisa turned around to bite her. Again. On the same hand. Tohru then proceeded to babble incoherently from the pulsing pain. Finally, Tohru managed to complete a sentence._

"_Won't you come inside for now, Kisa-san?"_

"_Kisa?" a different but familiar voice spoke. Kisa froze. It was her…_

"_Kisa, it's your mother," her mother announced. Tohru and Kisa both looked at her. "Shigure-san made sure to call me. Hey. What're you doing? What are you doing, causing trouble for everyone around you? What're you thinking? Do you enjoy worrying your mother? Why did you _tell_ me you were being teased? Why did you run away? Why won't you _say_ anything? I'm sick of this. I don't want anymore of this."_

"_She _can't _say it," Tohru replied for Kisa. "To tell someone who cares about you that you're being teased is really hard to do. I couldn't say it either. But after a while, my mom found out, and then I would apologize to her like I was stupid. I would feel so pathetic. I would think that I was so pathetic for being teased. I was ashamed when Mom found out. I wondered what I would do if she started to hate me. I was so scared._

"_So when Mom told me 'It's okay', I was so relieved. When she told me 'there's nothing to be ashamed of', I was so relieved that I started crying again. Kisa-san might be feeling the same way. She didn't want you to hate her. It's because she _loves_ you that she couldn't fell you."_

_At the end of Tohru's speech, there was a large cloud of some that enveloped the young tiger. Out of that smoke came Kisa as her normal self with her golden-orange hair and eyes. Kisa grabbed Tohru's injured hand with her cheek resting on top, tears streaming down her face. Closing her eyes tightly, Kisa went in to grab the comforting girl's shirt. Tohru wrapped her arms around the girl in a hug._

_Tohru knew exactly how Kisa felt, she knew what it was like to be teased. Tohru said the exact words both she and her mother needed to hear. Kisa now knew that she wasn't alone, she had someone who cared for her, someone who knew what she was going through. Ever since that moment, Kisa had been attached to Honda Tohru._

Kisa's sobs worsened as the memory flooded her mind. It replayed over and over, and so Kisa clung to Hiro who sighed. He also had to admit, it was sad that Tohru was on the verge of death. Stupid truck.

"_You brought us…to the __**park**__?" Hiro asked in disbelief. He and Kisa had gone to hand out with Tohru per Kisa's request. Therefore, Hiro demanded that she, Tohru, take them somewhere "fun". In the end, the older girl had brought them to something so juvenile as the _park

"_Yes! It's the park!" Tohru replied enthusiastically._

"_You know, you couldn't have picked a lamer, cheaper place. You mean there's no concept of _movies_ or _theme parks_ in your stupid head?"_

"_Right now, I really don't have any money…" Tohru stammered._

"_I like the park," Kisa then interjected meekly._

"_I forgive you," Hiro said, tossing his head to the side. After all, if Kisa enjoyed it, Hiro would be okay with it, even if it meant hanging with _Tohru_, which it usually did. Hiro was in love with Kisa and he wanted to be the only one to help her. He wasn't doing so hot at the moment either. That was evident in the way that Kisa was frequently talking about Tohru._

"_Thank you very much!" Tohru replied in a slight relieved whimper._

_Finally something caught Tohru's attention._

"_Ah, it's a crepe stand! Would you two like one?" Tohru asked, turning to address the smaller children._

"_Would you like one, Kisa?" Hiro asked pleasantly. Kisa nodded in response._

"_Then I'll go buy some!" Tohru chirped. "Kisa-san, what flavor would you like?"_

_Hiro watched as Kisa had trouble deciding. He watched as Tohru helped her. Hiro also watched them smile at each other. Hiro wanted to be the only one to see that smile, the only one to make Kisa smile like that. Hiro was admittedly jealous of Tohru, and the only way he knew how to cope with that jealousy was to take it out on Tohru._

"_Wait here! I'll be right back!" Tohru announced when she and Kisa had finally decided on what they wanted._

_As Tohru was making the order, Hiro stomped up behind her and kicked the back of Tohru's knees. Tohru, of course, was startled and clutched her heart in her huddled position. Hiro stood behind with a resigned and annoyed look on his face._

"_**I'll**__ pay for Kisa's," Hiro declared. "And I changed my choice, so I'll pay for mine too. _You_ can buy your own._

"_Look you. Stand up straight; don't be so sloppy."_

"_Okay!" Tohru complied in a rushed, slightly fear filled tone._

"_I don't get it. Why couldn't I do what someone so ditzy as you could?" Hiro asked with bitter anger. He turned to look at Tohru. "You think you're that great?"_

"_Huh?!"_

"_You think you can make any worries anyone has go away?"_

"_Eh?"_

"_You think you can erase any pain or sadness? You think you can _save_ people?"_

"_Um, I'm not…I'm nowhere near that-"_

"_When you act so humble all the time, you just come of as _pathetic_, so give it a rest."_

"_Okay," Tohru gave in dejectedly._

_After a moment of reminiscing about his past mistakes and his weaknesses, Hiro quietly asked aloud with balled fists, "Why? Why am I so _childish_? I…I can't do anything! I'm just a kid!"_

"_Hiro-san, you're amazing!" Tohru exclaimed, ripping Hiro from his thoughts. "I really can't think of you as being in sixth grade."_

"_I'm not asking for your help!" Hiro retorted. "Or you trying to flatter me?"_

"_No, that's not it! My mom said that there are a lot of people who are afraid to admit that they're still children," Tohru told Hiro gently and warmly, smiling as well. "So people who can admit that have lots of courage, she says. Hiro-san, you can do things. You can be the _wonderful prince_ who _protects_ Kisa-san, because inside you, Hiro-san, you __**do**__ have courage."_

"_So you're saying that right now I'm nothing like a prince?" Hiro demanded trying to make sense of Tohru's words and turn them into basic terms._

_Tohru panicked, trying to convince Hiro that that's not what she meant._

"_Well you would be right," Hiro admitted._

_Right at that moment, the announcement was made that the crepes were done. Hiro turned to look up at Tohru. He offered to pay for Tohru's order in exchange for Tohru's advice. So, as Hiro walked over to Kisa with their purchases, a new goal was set, set and etched deeply into Hiro's heart. He _would_ become the person Tohru described. He _would_ become a better person._

Hiro glared at the blank wall ahead of him. Hiro had made progress. He still took out his frustration on other people, but it was definitely progress. Thanks to that person, Hiro had put his foot forward, but now that same girl was in the hospital. Might as well be her death bed, along with a good number of other patients as well that he didn't care about. Although, Hiro wasn't the only one with pessimistic thoughts on his mind.

_Ritsu had come for a visit to Shigure's house to see what the ever famous Honda Tohru was like. However, at the front of the gate, the bottom of his bag that contained his gift for his hosts, ripped, and the gift tumbled out of the bag to the ground. Ritsu being Ritsu, panicked. That's when none other than Honda Tohru came over to help. Also, apparently, Tohru had heard of him._

_Pleasant talk passes between Ritsu, Shigure, and Tohru, who had entered to serve the shy guest a drink. That was until Shigure decided to tease the poor college boy. Ritsu went into another apologetic frenzy. Shigure eventually managed to calm him down. Introductions were then finally formally induced. More talking, more excessive apologies, and finally Yuki came home._

_While Yuki talked to Tohru, Ritsu thought it would be best to leave them now. He told Tohru so as well. Debating on whether or not Ritsu should stay longer, Tohru accidentally caused a plate to fall over and shatter onto the floor. That sent Ritsu into a mass panic. Tohru, in attempt to prevent injury, went to bring Ritsu away from the broken glass on the floor. In that position, though, Tohru caused Ritsu to transform into a little brown monkey. That enlightened the confused Tohru to the fact that Ritsu was actually male instead of a female like she had come to believe._

_Ritsu then got properly dressed, meaning dressed in men's clothing, and went to the roof as Tohru's cut hand was temporarily being bandaged. He had only been up there for a few minutes before Tohru, Yuki, and Shigure came outside and found him._

"_Oh dear," Shigure commented lightly._

"_Ritchan-san?!" Tohru exclaimed. "W-w-wa-wa-watch out!"_

_Ritsu turned his head to look at her. "Tohru-san, I know an apology isn't enough, but I'm sorry for inflicting such a terrible wound on you."_

"_It's not a terrible wound! It's just a little cut!" Tohru cried._

"_And I'm sorry that I didn't tell you that I'm really a man," Ritsu continued. "I was embarrassed."_

"_There's no need to be! I don't think it would be embarrassing for you to dress as a woman. I thought you looked wonderful!"_

"_Tohru-kun, I don't think you're helping," Shigure told Tohru. Ritsu only proved Shigure's statement._

"_Ahh! Why do I always, always cause trouble to everyone around me?! I'm so shameless, the way I burden everyone! Why was someone such as I give life in this world? Maybe, maybe it would've been better for everyone if I cut short my existence…but no! I don't even have the courage for _that_. That's right. I serve no purpose in life, but when it comes to ending it, I am doubly __**shameless**__**I hate myself!**__ Someone like me deserves to be _punished_. Only _divine punishment_ will do!"_

"_Rit-chan, c'mon…" Shigure tried pathetically._

"_Don't say that!" Tohru cried in deep concern. "You don't have to be courageous! What's wrong with being shameless?! Sometimes living can be hard, but it's only because we're alive that we can make each other laugh, cry, be happy! If that's not a reason for being born in this world, I don't know what is!"_

_Right then, Ritsu slipped and began to slide down the roof. This alerted the others below. Tohru covered her eyes, unable to watched. When nothing happened, Tohru removed her hands. Ritsu managed to pull himself back up and stayed silent for a moment._

"_I twisted my ankle," Ritsu whimpered. Everyone went back inside after that. That was only the first part of Ritsu's amazing experience with Tohru._

_Ritsu ended up spending the night, and Ritsu was coming back from shopping for snacks for Shigure when he came across Tohru coming home from school. They began to walk towards their destination together. While they were walking, the two decided to say what was on their minds. Of course, they argued, in a polite way, about who would speak first. Finally, they decided that Ritsu would go first._

"_Well, th-there's something I want to ask," Ritsu started timidly._

"_Yes, what is it?" Tohru urged._

"_That is, w-when you met my mother…she didn't say anything, did she? I mean, about me…that she's _ashamed_? Anything like that? F-forgive me. It must bother you to be asked such things. I'm sorry!_

"_I know it's my fault for being a son that she has to apologize for. I …really __**am**__ hopeless. I'm possessed by a vengeful spirit, but unlike the other Junishi, I don't have anything resembling talent. I have to study twice as hard to be able to keep up with everyone else. I'm weak and clumsy, and on the 'inside' they often talked about how worthless I am, and my poor parents, all they can do is apologize._

"_Ever since I discovered by chance that wearing women's clothing helps me calm down a little, I've dressed like that. But that just added to the number of things my parents had to apologize for. I though I'd try to be stronger and stop dressing like a woman, but…I just don't have the confidence. So that's why I'm so _hopeless_. Maybe it would be better if I didn't exist. I'm sure that there was no reason for me to be born, but I still keep living. I really am very shameless…"_

_The moment Ritsu finished, Tohru spoke up, "You're trying to find it aren't you?"_

_Ritsu looked over at Tohru in surprised curiosity._

"_I'm sure that inside your heart you're trying with all your might to find it on your own; the reason you were born. Because…because really there might not be anyone who was _born_ with a reason. I think everyone might have to find it themselves and decide if for themselves. It could be your dreams, your job, or a person. The reason you're looking for might be vague, unclear, and uncertain, but as long as you're alive, you have to keep searching for that reason._

"_I'm searching, too, and if I can…if I can, I want to find my reason in someone else, and someday, I hope I'll find that special someone to whom I can say, 'you're my reason for living.' Whenever I start to feel sad, I think about my reason, and I know I have to keep doing my best. So that's why I'm sure it's okay even if you're shameless, because if you stay true to yourself and live your life boldly, someday you might be able to meet someone who will want to eat takoyaki with you more than with anyone else."_

_Ritsu was touched by this. So much so that he cried but smiled. "I wonder if I can find it. My reason. I hope I can someday. I, too, if it's possible, I want to find it in someone else. I hope I can eat takoyaki with them."_

Ritsu did find someone: Mitsuru, Shigure's editor. Tohru also found her someone, Kyo, even though she didn't realize it. Ritsu sniffed. It was horrible, _horrible_. How could such a kind, wonderful, considerate girl be run over? Why did it happen? Why didn't the driver notice Tohru there? If someone were to be run over it should be _him_. However, fate wasn't so kind and there Ritsu sat. Kagura agreed with that.

_It was the first time they met. It was after she spent the night at Shigure's home. After she had ran into the delivery boy who had been chased off by Yuki. Tohru was holding Kagura in her Zodiac form. As usual, Tohru was smiling at her._

"_Kagura-san, I think I know why you like Kyo-kun so much. Kyo-kun has so many wonderful qualities! So just like you, Kagura-san, I-" Tohru had begun admiringly._

_Kagura wriggled free of Tohru's grip to attack Kyo once again. "Kyo-kun, you traitor!"_

"_Didn't she say she'd forgive him for cheating on her?" Shigure wondered aloud to himself._

"_I didn't say I wouldn't punish him first!" Kagura retorted demonically._

"_No! That's not what I meant. What I meant to say, is that I hope I can find as much to love in the one I'll someday fall in love with as you find in Kyo-kun," Tohru clarified._

"_As much as I do?" Kagura repeated._

"_Yes! I really admire you!" Tohru confirmed cheerfully._

Well, Tohru achieved that. It also happened to be Kyo as well. However, Kagura realized that it was futile to hold onto Kyo any longer, and she would be okay if she lost him to Tohru…no one else. It was hard, but at least Kyo was happy, but now…now his happiness was shattering. Tohru was unconscious, dying even, and he could do nothing about it. It broke Kagura's heart just thinking about it, and it was really sad how Tohru got hit by that damn truck. She didn't deserve it in the least. Momiji knew that, too, with all his heart.

_Momiji had been helping Tohru out with her job once again. They were talking along the way as Tohru finished up. That's when Tohru had thought back to a conversation she had earlier that day with Arisa and Saki._

"_Oh yeah, Momiji-kun?" Tohru asked curiously._

"_Was (what)?" Momiji replied in German._

"_Which one of your parents is German?"_

"_Mutti!" Momiji exclaimed enthusiastically._

"_Mootea…?" Tohru sounded out, utterly confused._

"_That means my mom!" Momiji clarified._

"_Oh! Your mother!" Tohru chirped._

"_I have a picture! Ta-daaaaah!" Momiji said as he produced a framed picture of a woman with long, wavy blonde hair with a smile of her lipstick-covered lips standing in front of the leaf-dominated branches. It was Momiji's favorite picture of his mother._

"_Sh-she's beautiful!" Tohru exclaimed in surprise. Momiji giggled with hands on hips in pride._

"_She met papa — oh, papa is a Sohma — when they were in college and they got married! Papa was lucky to get such a pretty girl!" Momiji explained with excitement._

"_Y-yeah," Tohru agreed._

"_And! And! I have a little sister! Her name's Momo! Momo looks _just_ like Mama!"_

"_You have a sister, Momiji-kun?!" Tohru cried in shock._

"_She's in the second grade right now. Ah! But Momo isn't a member of the Zodiac. And! And! She looks just like Mama! She's soooo spoiled! She follows Mama around like a baby chick, but she doesn't speak much Japanese. She has a lot of trouble with it. She's sooo cute!"_

_Tohru had smiled. Momiji really cared for his little sister._

"_Mama and Momo usually come to pick up Papa from work."_

"_So you'll all go home together, right?" Tohru asked._

"_Yeah, I wish! But Mama doesn't know about me," Momiji replied, sadness slipping into his voice despite his smiling face._

"_Momiji-chan?" a woman's voice asked from behind. Momiji turned around to face none other than his own mother and sister. "What are you doing in a place like this so late at night?"_

_Momiji turned to completely face the blonde-haired pair. "My friend works here part-time, so I came to play with her!"_

"_But this isn't a playground," his mother said, tilting her head to the side._

"_I know. I'm sorry," Momiji apologized and bowed._

"_Besides, if you stay out to late, won't your mother worry?"_

"_It's okay, I'm going now!"_

"_Oh? Don't take any shortcuts. Thank you for cleaning." The last was directed at Tohru._

"_Oh, yes…" Tohru's voice was a little dazed, just freshly being brought out of her thoughts._

"_Okay, Momo, let's go. Papa must be tired of waiting."_

_Momo and her mother walked away. Once they were out of sight, Momiji put the back of his hand to his forehead._

"_Unglück (bad luck)!" Momiji said exasperated. "She saw me! I'll have to apologize to Papa later!"_

"_Momiji-kun," Tohru said softly, reminding Momiji that she was still a little lost._

"_Yeah. Mama doesn't know about me. She _forgot_. Her memories were…_surprised_. Mama thinks that I'm one of the Sohma children._

"_Children who are cursed by vengeful spirits are born two months earlier than normal. To meet your true love, then marry your true love, and have a baby with your true love and hold that baby, and then have it turn into a strange baby animal, what despair would a mother feel? The mothers of children possessed by vengeful spirits either become extremely overprotective of them or _reject_ them entirely. My mama rejected me._

"_She rejected me with her whole body. She wouldn't look at me. She was always irritated, always hysterical. Thinking about it now, I can tell she was _broken_. Just like Kana."_

_It was then Momiji remembered his father telling him why his mother's memories were going to be suppressed. Then he remembered his mother's words right before the suppression took place. "_The greatest regret I have in this life is that that creature came out of my body._"_

"_And so," Momiji continued, "I disappeared from Mama's memories. Mama eventually got better. In two months, she could smile again. I wondered if I really helped Mama."_

_Tohru was crying and Momiji was gazing sadly at the floor in his squatting position._

"_But, I think I want to live with all my memories. Even if they're sad memories. Even if they're memories that only hurt me. Even…even if they're memories that I'd rather forget. If I keep them and keep trying, without running away, if I keep trying, then someday…someday I'll be strong enough that those memories can't defeat me. I believe that. I want to believe that because I want to think that there's no such thing as a memory that's okay to forget. That's why…that's why I really didn't want Mama to forget. I wanted her to keep trying, but that was my selfishness." Momiji looked at Tohru with a finger to his lips as he concluded, "It's a secret."_

_Tohru trembled, tears streaming down a mile a minute. She was so touched and saddened by this that Tohru ran and embraced Momiji tightly, paying no heed to her surroundings. Cradled in Tohru's arms was the bright yellow rabbit otherwise known as Momiji. There he could clearly hear Tohru sadly whisper…_

"_I also believe that."_

_Momiji began to cry, too. The two of them sat there crying. Even though it was the last thing on their minds, nobody had seen Momiji transform. What _was_ on Momiji's mind, though, was, '_She feels the same way! She understands. I'm so glad I was finally able to tell someone, someone who also understands. Thank you…thank you!_'_

_Sometime later, Tohru had a run-in with Sohma Momo and discovered something even more tragic about the siblings' relationship. Momiji was glad of that for a couple of different reasons. Of course, Momiji learned all of this when Tohru tentatively knocked right when he safely loaded his violin away that he had just finished practicing. He looked towards the transparent sliding glass door in surprise when he saw a distraught Tohru on the other side._

"Tohru?!_" he exclaimed. Once he opened the door, Momiji cried, "You surprised me! What's wrong? Why're you here? Anyway, come inside!"_

_Momiji gently helped the worried girl inside with a slight giggle. "You're kind of dirty, Tohru. How did you get here? Where did you get in from?...Tohru? What's wrong?"_

_The concerned blonde finally really looked Tohru's less-than-happy expression. Momiji placed a hand on Tohru's cheek, which he noticed, upon touching it, was tear streaked. Tohru's eyes were slightly red and puffy. Obviously she had been crying. About _what_ exactly, Momiji wasn't particularly sure. It also looked like Tohru was having difficulty speaking about that specific subject, Momiji deduced._

_So Tohru settled with, with her head and gaze downcast, "V-violin…you play the violin?"_

"_Yup!" Momiji answered enthusiastically as usual while turning to look at where the instrument laid. "I've been slacking on it since I started high school though. Ever since I stopped going to see my teacher."_

_Momiji winked and stuck out his tongue playfully. Tohru was taken aback by Momiji's words._

"_Eh? You stopped?" Tohru cried._

"_Yeah," Momiji answered simply._

"_B-but you'll still play the violin, right?" Tohru asked, filled to the brim of desperation. Momiji looked at her in surprise for a moment. A sad smile replaced it though. Momo looked at her in surprise for a moment. A sad smile replaced it though._

"_Momo wanted to learn to play the violin, so Papa wanted her to learn from my teacher because he's famous. So Papa made me stop learning from him. But really, Papa is scared of me getting close to Mama and Momo. He's scared. He doesn't want the happiness he worked so hard to rebuild to be destroyed. He doesn't want to be hurt anymore. He's afraid that he'll be hurt if they see me."_

"_But…but Momo-san, she wants to see you. Momo-san…actually, it was Momo-san who brought me all the way here. It's true. It's really true. Momo-san…Momo-san knew about you. All this time…all this time she's been watching you. All this time, Momiji-kun. Just like you've always watched over her! Momo-san has been listening to your violin!" Tohru was crying heavily again, and Momiji stared at her with a blank, shocked expression. "She says…she wants to talk to you. She wants to play with you. She…she wants to know if you'll be her b — her _brother_!"_

_Tohru said no more as she continued to sob away. This was absolutely heartbreaking for her, not to mention Momiji. That these two couldn't see each other or talk to each other when that's all they wanted. They just wanted to be siblings, but they couldn't!_

"_So it _is_ true! Papa said that Momo was curious about me! I see. She's been _watching_ me. What should I do? What should I do?! I'm so happy!" Momiji exclaimed, clapping his hands together while blushing with tears rolling down his red cheeks. Tohru had continued to cry and sank to her knees._

"_Tohru. My dream, you know? It's to be a violinist. I want to be a violinist and have a small concert and Papa and Mama and Momo will listen to me play!_

"_Thank you, Momo," Momiji said softly. "You've made me so happy. I'm so happy because there's someone who will cry for me."_

_Momiji said the last as he knelt in front of Tohru in a comforting way. He had been confided in and cried for . Tohru was so kind to him, so kind. Now Momiji knew more than before that he was very grateful for this crying girl. Tohru understood and accepted his and Momo's feelings and cried fro them. It was so nice and it made Momiji beyond happy to know that Tohru cared that deeply. Indescribably happy._

Momiji huddled himself in his chair, crying into his knees. Now it was _his_ turn to cry for Tohru. How could it happen? A main source of his happiness was on the brink of being completely trampled. It wasn't fair. It just wasn't fair. So Momiji cried as much as he could for Tohru, but even that wouldn't be enough to repay all that Tohru had done for him. Though, this was all he could do, all he could do for _her_. Being there at the hospital was all that Ayame could do too, for now anyway.

_Ayame strutted down the path in his usual confident way. He was heading towards Shigure's house on the "outside", wondering what this Honda Tohru was like, the girl he had heard so much about. Of course, the servants weren't exactly the kindest people, especially when gossiping, but judging from what they were saying and how they were saying it, Sohma Ayame could already tell this Honda Tohru was an amazing girl. Ayame had still yet to meet her, but he felt that meeting her would only confirm his suspicions. Although, that wasn't the only reason Ayame had for traveling all the way to Shigure's._

_What Ayame was also coming over for was a chance to console Yuki, be a brother to him in attempt to get closer to Yuki and make up for all that he's done to Yuki. Well, more like _hadn't_ done to him. Only a mere few days before, there was an encounter with Akito and Yuki. Yuki's living nightmare, the head of the family, the _God_ of the Junishi, had dropped by at Yuki's high school for a visit. Ayame could only imagine what Yuki must've felt just even seeing Akito. This is why Ayame was concerned, and so he sincerely wished for a chance to finally be a brother to Yuki._

_Ayame would find out when he got there. A cold breeze soon washed over the regal man, and he felt an odd yet familiar tingling sensation circulate through him. Before Ayame knew it, he had transformed into his Zodiac sign: the snake. He slithered away from his useless garments and went to find a warmer place to be until he transformed back. Being the snake, Ayame was susceptible to the weather's temperatures, so he had to make sure that he didn't get _too_ cold, or things would be bad then._

_Footsteps. Someone was approaching. Ayame prepared himself._

_There was a small, smooth voice that echoed excitedly. Ayame watched as a teenage girl with braided brown hair and equally brown eyes walk casually down the dirt path. She clapped her hands together and then paused as she noticed something up ahead. The girl walked over to the clothes perfectly aligned and lifted them with a thoughtful look on her face. In her moment of realization that Ayame wasn't paying attention to, Ayame took this opportunity to warm himself up and slithered up the poor girl's clothes. Well, as long as Ayame was warm, nothing else really mattered, even the high-pitched, terrified scream that the girl unleashed. It was that time afterward, Sohma Ayame fell asleep._

_Some time later, Ayame slowly began to stir to the sounds of voices, most of them quite recognizable. The only thing Ayame could understand clearly was Shigure explaining the Mabudachi Trio and trying to pry answers out of Yuki about Ayame slinking up the brunette girl's clothing. That was when Ayame felt that sensation again, and there was a small explosion of smoke, indicating a transformation. In Ayame's case, this would be a signal of Ayame reverting back into his wonderful human self._

"_Please allow me to explain myself. My body was extremely cold earlier. I was merely looking for _warmth_. When I sense someone with warm skin approaching, can you blame me if my survival instincts took over?" Ayame asked as he adorned his garments and slid open the thing paper door that had separated the two rooms. "Greetings, everyone! Have you been well, little brother?"_

_Yuki had gotten up and walked over to exclaim in the silver haired snake's face, "What do you mean 'survival instincts'?! You should be glad I haven't taken you to the _police_!"_

_Bickering ensued. Quite a bit actually. Finally starting to ignore them, Ayame sat down at the table. Ayame slapped his hand on the hardy wood in an ushering way._

"_Now would her highness make me some tea? And hurry up and honor me with lunch!"_

"That's not respect!_" Yuki and Kyo shouted at the same time. After all, they had just been talking about how Ayame was supposedly not showing Honda Tohru respect._

"_Aya, you're treating her like a _maid_," even Shigure reprimanded._

"_Am I?" Ayame asked. "Very well…take your time honoring me with lunch."_

"_That's not what he meant!" Kyo shouted. Of course, Kyonkichi always shouted._

_Ayame sighed in exasperation. This was becoming ridiculous. "What? You're so picky. Okay, Tohru-kun…"_

"_Yes?" she asked as Ayame clutched her hand._

"_Let's go out to eat!" Ayame declared, dragging Tohru out the door._

"_Oh? Uh, um, but-"_

"_No need to worry, it's _my treat_."_

_It seemed like no time flat that Ayame and Tohru arrived at the restaurant Ayame had led them to. For a moment or two, both customers sat in silence and Ayame twisted his long silvery hair over his shoulder._

"_Now you may order whatever you like. _I_ will be having _gyouza_," Ayame said once done with his hair. "There's no need to worry about Yuki and the others. They're not children; they can feed themselves."_

"_B-but I shouldn't impose-"_

"_Are you saying you'll refuse food I buy for you?" Ayame asked dramatically, a hand gently gripping Tohru's face. Tohru blushed a bright red._

"_N-no, that's not what I meant at all!" Tohru exclaimed panicked. Ayame pulled away with a satisfied smile on his face._

"_Excellent! Waiter! We'd like two orders of gyouza!"_

_As they waited for the food, Tohru continued the conversation. "Yuki-kun never mentioned having a brother, or that his brother was one of the zodia — do Kyo-kun and Shigure-san have siblings, too?!"_

"_Nope. They're 'only child's. But it's not surprising that Yuki didn't say anything. As you've seen, we don't get along. It may be more accurate to say we're 'not close'._

"_We're ten years apart, and soon after Yuki was born, he was isolated because of his illness. I grew up doing whatever I wanted. It was so bad, I only remembered in passing that I even _had_ a brother. And by the time I came around, there was a deep, imposing rift between us. Now you know why._

"_Yuki…I hear he saw Akito at school. You met him, too, didn't you? How should I put this…? I can't really explain it, but Akito is an object of _terror_ for Yuki. It's much worse for him than for the other Junishi. I thought he'd been depressed recently, so I came to see you…or rather to _check_ on Yuki. But I found him so _cheerful_. To be honest, I was disappointed. I thought I might get a chance to be more of a big brother to him."_

"_Do you…regret it?" Tohru asked quietly._

"_Strangely enough, when you get older, the things you didn't understand as a child start to make sense. '_When this happened I should've done _that_._' '_When _that_ happened, I should have said _this_._' Those types of things. You start to _understand_ rather than _regret_. It may be closer to repentance. So it may be that I do want to repent and erase the ignorant self from my childhood. Maybe that's what they mean when they say adults are selfish."_

"_But my mom…my mom said that when you become a parent, you understand for the first time what a parent feels. But what you _really_ need to understand, what you _really_ shouldn't forget is what you felt like as a _child_. The first time you did a somersault, the first time someone got really mad at you, if you can really remember how you felt when you were a child even when you're an adult or a parent, then you can understand each other. Even if it's not a hundred percent, you can meet each other halfway, she said."_

_During Tohru's speech, Ayame stared at the smiling girl in amazement. Tohru blushed as she noticed the golden orbs on her._

"_Oh! No, that is, um, what I meant to say was — um, I mean — Yuki-kun and Ayame-san, you should meet halfway from now on!"_

_Ayame's eyes widened in surprise at the advice. It was touching and thoughtful. Even though the two had barely met, Tohru was already concerned about the relationship between him and Yuki. She was truly a sweet girl._

Thanks to Tohru, Ayame really had gotten closer to Yuki. Their relationship had improved so much and it was thanks to Tohru's advice. She had also helped Yuki open up and try to build a bond with Ayame. It was such a shame that such a kind, accepting girl would be so hideously injured. It had made Ayame so angry at that driver, that the driver could so blind as to hit such a girl no matter that he knew her or not. As much as Hatori hated to admit it, he was quite angry too.

_It was several days after New Year's and Hatori was out on a rare visit to the city. It was also weeks after he had Honda Tohru over at his home to warn her. Even after he had warned her and heard about him and Kana, Tohru had cried for _them_ and said that she didn't regret meeting anyone. She was grateful and extremely thoughtful. Selfless as well. It also happened as Hatori was walking down the street that he once again ran into Honda Tohru._

"_Happy New Year!" she greeted once she got Hatori's attention._

"_Happy New Year," Hatori returned, slightly dazed still. Idle chat passed, most of it from Tohru. However, the next thing she said grabbed Hatori's attention._

"_It's snowing. Today's going to be a cold one. Somehow, it's strange that I'm seeing the first snow with you, Hatori-san."_

_It was at that moment Tohru had slipped on a rock, falling backwards. Hatori then reached out to catch her. However, he ended up catcher her with both arms and falling back enough to hit his head. POOF! Hatori was an eight-inch seahorse and Tohru panicked…just like Kana had when she found out. That had led Hatori to dream about his history with Kana._

"_Hatori-san!" Tohru's voice brought Hatori to consciousness._

"_I'm cold," Hatori stated somewhat randomly. Tohru then explained what happened in a frantic manner. When Hatori announced he was going to get dressed, Tohru left to go get drinks. Hatori was left with his thoughts._

_When Tohru had come back, Hatori decided to ask Tohru _that_ question._

"_When…snow melts, what do you think it becomes?"_

"_Huh? Ah, um, well, hmmm. It becomes _spring_! No matter how cold it is now, _spring_ will come again! Without fail. It's strange isn't it? But it's true."_

_Even her answer was like Kana's. This incidence led Hatori to become fond of the girl along with the meetings after. Hatori only wished that Tohru would bee happy with the one she loved, because, Hatori believed, that was all he could for his "love life" was over._

Now Tohru couldn't. Well, maybe, depending on her condition. Though that was highly unlikely. Still, this terrible accident caused pain to everyone, unnecessary pain, especially to Kyo. It hurt Hatori to see that these two could possibly not end up together. Hatori need to be there to make sure; make sure that the two really couldn't be together. However, even though Kyo was the closest to Tohru, there was someone else especially close to her that was a great deal concerned too.

_She had only found out a mere few hours ago. Found out about the Zodiac curse placed upon the Sohma family. The stupid cat known otherwise as Sohma Kyo had just returned from his four month trip to the mountains and smashed through the roof. Typical. Due to the breakage, Tohru slipped and fell onto Kyo, causing him to transform. After that, in Honda Tohru's panic, fell onto Yuki and Shigure, making them transform as well. It was a chain reaction that Tohru discovered the "family secret"._

_After that (and a fight between Yuki and Kyo due to Kyo accidentally hitting Tohru in the face with the table later), Yuki and Tohru had gone off to school. Of course, Yuki had expressed his suspicions of Shigure explaining everything about the curse in order to have Tohru's memories suppressed, but he still couldn't leave it alone. It was just too obvious that his cousin was up to something, and he knew almost for sure that Tohru's memories would be suppressed. That's why he wanted to express his concerns to that particular girl, so Yuki waited outside the girls' locker room while Tohru changed into her freshly laundered school uniform._

_Finally, Tohru exited the male-forbidden room._

"_Honda-san," Yuki said to grab Tohru's attention. "You didn't tell them, did you? Your friends. About us?"_

"_Tell them? No. I didn't! Am I making you nervous? I'm a liability, aren't I? I would never tell anyone! My mom always told me that gossiping is wrong!" Tohru rambled frantically._

"_No, it's not that," Yuki replied in an opposing calm tone. It didn't seem to reach Tohru's ears though._

"_I promise! I'll sign my name in blood or burn myself with a cigarette or anything you want! I'm pretty sure my mom did stuff like that…" Tohru cried._

"_No. I told you that's not it," Yuki repeated. '_What kind of person _was_ her mother?_' Yuki vaguely wondered._

_Yuki pressed Tohru against the opposite wall, desperately wanting the girl to hear him out. His head tilted downward, a dazed look washing over his face as a particular memory came flooding back to him. He had to let Tohru know about his worries of this situation._

"_You're going to all this trouble to keep out secret, but it may not be enough. I'm sorry, but your memories might have to be erased. I say 'erased' but it's more like hypnosis. A long time ago…"_

_Yuki then proceeded to recount to Tohru about the instance where the secret had gotten out among his second grade friends. It had been so painful, seeing himself being "erased" from his only friends' memories like that . To be forgotten by people so dear to him…_

"_Sohma-kun?" Tohru's gentle voice sucked Yuki back out of his depressing thoughts. Yuki continued._

"_I cannot defy Akito's wishes. What he decides is what must be done. So…I'm sorry," he apologized yet again. "You never asked to get involved with the Sohma family's problems. I'm sorry. That's all."_

"_Uh, wai-" Tohru called as she had begun to watch Yuki walk away. Tohru had grabbed him in such a way that made him transform._

"_I didn't do that on purpose. Oh, I'm such an idiot!"_

"_Don't sweat it. It's fine. As long as now one saw…"_

"_Thank you for worrying about me. It makes me really happy…It's okay. I'm fine." Tohru bent over to smile warmly at the little Yuki rat. " I found out such a big secret that you _have_ to talk to the head of your family about it. You can't help it. Please, do whatever will make your family most comfortable._

"_There is one thing — please, if my memories are erased, will you still be my friend?"_

That had started it all. After they found out that Tohru was allowed to stay in the household _with_ her memories, everything had been set in motion. Through the almost three years Yuki had spent with Tohru, Tohru had repeatedly helped Yuki in numerous ways. Such as the summer home they went to for their last summer vacation. Bonds had been formed, bonds of love. Tohru, as it turned out, had all that he had been looking for in his mother. Tohru was indeed precious to him. That's why he had felt such shock and fear when Haru had come in to find the phone to call nine-one-one.

Yuki's face was in his hands as his elbows dug into his knees and his frame was bent over. This whole incident was hard to grasp. Someone like Tohru shouldn't, _couldn't_, get run over. It just wasn't fair, nor right in the least. Also, Yuki admitted that he felt most sorry for Kyo, who was in love with the girl unlike the others, the way a man loved a woman, and he had watched it happen. Oh, the torture. Yuki couldn't bring himself to blame Kyo yet for what happened, he just couldn't. After all, it was an accident and there was the exposure risk of Kyo going out to save Tohru.\

Shigure was also fairly concerned, but everyone knew that Shigure _never_ worried about anything. Even in this scenario. Shigure was upset with this incident like everyone else, but not to that far of an extent. Also, like everyone else, his mind began to wonder to his memories of Tohru —

"Excuse me?"

Every pair of eyes in the waiting room lifted to the doorway. That hadn't hear the door open due to how deep in thought they all were. A nurse had timidly walked into the room where the Sohmas awaited in her white uniform. Kyo was also behind her, face shadowed. Kyo brushed past the nurse and took a seat far away from the others known as his family. Kyo had long since been shooed out of Tohru's room due to the doctors coming back to finish the tests, but he didn't have the energy to go into the waiting room. So he had sat by the door until the nurse came by. However, nobody paid any real attention to the orange haired boy, not that Kyo minded it.

"Yes?" Hatori spoke up for the others.

"Um, the doctors are finishing the tests right now. However, from the looks of it, I'm afraid to say that, Honda-san's condition doesn't look all that good," the nurse announced, a grave look on her face.

Everyone's hearts seemed to stop right then. None made a sound, none breathed. Great. Just what they all needed to hear.


	4. Visits and News

**(A/N: Hey! Another chapter is out! Yay. I got this out much sooner than the last one, but I was having trouble fleshing this chapter out. Oh well. I want to thank my two consecutive reviewers for reviewing each chapter, and the others who have just reviewed in general. **

**My birthday is coming up and I'm having trouble keeping up with schoolwork, so it might be some time before I start on the next chapter. Well, in this chapter the plot moves forward a bit, so no more filler crap for now. Well, that's pretty much all I have to say for now, except that I hope you enjoy this next chapter!)**

**Disclaimer: I. Do. Not. Own. Fruits Basket. Natsuki Takaya owns Fruits Basket. If any Fruits Basket fanfiction writer, including myself, owned Fruits Basket, then I doubt there would be the need for the Fruits Basket section on Since we do not, this section henseforth exists.**

* * *

Operation: Revive The Princess

_Visits and News_

* * *

Silence hung heavily within Shigure's household. The scent of take-out food remained wafting through the air. Shigure, once he was down with his so called breakfast, shut himself up in his study. This left Yuki and Kyo to prepare for school by themselves in gloomy silence. Once finished, the two head out without uttering a word. Tohru's absence had taken its toll on the related pair, as it also did with Hanajima Saki and Uotani Arisa. 

Speaking of which, both Saki and Arisa weren't there at school. Probably the two of them were playing hooky to visit Tohru at the hospital. As much as both Kyo and Yuki wanted to do that too, they didn't.

Classes seemed to drag by sluggishly, lunch seemed bland, and the overall fire of life appeared to be extinguished. All because Tohru wasn't there. It only proved how close she was to them. The bell rang, but it barely reached Kyo and Yuki's ears. Yuki then trudged off to his Student Council meeting and Kyo scuffled off to Sohma Kazuma's dojo.

The day was a blur. The next thing either Kyo or Yuki knew, they were sitting at the table munching on their take-out dinner solemnly. During that dinner at several points, the cousins thought that Tohru was entering the home, perfectly fine, that her coma was only a mere dream. Their hopes fell every time.

After supper, Kyo announced that he was going to the hospital. No one said anything and let Kyo slide the door shut. Wind greeted Kyo upon exiting the house, and it coldly blew his orange locks out of his face. The wind wrapped itself around Kyo's bare arms like chains, reminding him of the icy pool of blood that had stained Tohru's broken body. Kyo closed his dull orange eyes tightly, furrowing his eyebrows and scolded himself for thinking about that. Although that was going to be difficult since he was going to be visiting Tohru at the _hospital_.

Speaking of which, Kyo was almost there. He was just passing the local park. Children running all over the place giggling and screaming, parents tiredly resting on a nearby bench, a couple or two strolling through holding hands, you know, the usual. Kyo sighed as he paused and stared at the scene. Why did parks have to be so _depressing_? Oh, right. Tohru.

The park reminded Kyo of Tohru. The tremendously innocent children smiling and laughing, Tohru could've fit right in with them if she was a lot shorter. Caring, loving parents sitting on the bench watched out and protected their kids whenever they tripped or were crying, just like Kyoko had done, only more eccentric about it. Kyo also saw how Tohru saw couple pass them down the street holding hands. She eyed them with that content longing, as if she would be perfectly happy with just that — watching couples be together and only vaguely wish that someday, in the far, far future, she _might_ be in a romantic relationship. Romance was an extreme luxury for Tohru, just as it had been for the trip to the onsen and the ice cream cake.

Kyo forced himself to move on. Keeping his eyes ahead and memories buried, Kyo reached the hospital. For a minute, Kyo stood there unmoving. He merely stared at the handle to the entrance. Finally, Kyo gathered enough courage to reach out and grab the handle and pull open the door.

Kyo entered and noticed that nothing had really changed except for some added flowers on the side table beside the unconscious Tohru. Kyo walked over to the chair and sat down. His orange eyes scanned the girl lying beneath the white sheets, adorned in lots of bandages. Kyo gazed sadly, anger and depressing filled thoughts running through is mind, and his torso began to slowly bend over. The orange threads of his head falling carelessly in front of his face, his hands grasped firmly and protectively the small, fragile, pale one of Honda Tohru.

Kyo's teeth gritted together and his eyes tightly closed. A look of sorrow and pain swept his face. Tears fell and collected on the surface of Tohru's gripped hand. Kyo's image told onlookers that he was afraid, afraid that if he let go, he would lose Tohru forever. There, in that position, did Kyo stay until he went home when visiting hours were over.

* * *

Tohru's grandfather sat at the dinning room table, sadness plastered on his face. He had just heard his precious granddaughter had been hit by a truck and landed herself in the hospital. It was so sad; how could such a sweet girl meet such a fate? Just like her mother, only her mother had died. If Tohru will die, how could he face the loneliness? Crumbling. That family was crumbling, falling apart. Tohru's grandfather could only imagine what the Sohmas whom she had been living with were feeling. Such a tragedy. He was never particularly good with tragedy. 

Tohru's grandfather sighed. He was tired and needed to rest. Grandfather rose from his seat and announced to his daughter that he was going to bed. She dismissed him indifferently and went back to reading her book. Grandfather then made his way slowly back to his room where he would ponder, and rest. Before that, though, he reached out for the phone to call Tohru's former residence.

"Hello?" came the solemn, polite, reply. Grandfather matched the voice to the silvery haired boy he had briefly met nearly two years before.

"Hello, this is Kyoko-san's grandfather," Grandfather announced so he could spark some recognition in the boy. Which he did.

"Ah! Honda-san's grandfather. Is everything all right?" Yuki's voice asked.

"Yes, everything's fine, but I've heard about the accident." Grandfather could hear the sad silence dripping through the phone. "I wanted to ask how she was doing since I had yet not gotten a chance to visit her yet."

"Oh." He could definitely hear the sad regret in Yuki's voice. "Honda-san…well, Honda-san is…Honda-san is in a coma and the doctors don't know how long it'll last, nor if she'll ever wake up. She's hanging on by a thread, so who knows…if she'll survive."

"I see," Grandfather said, a wave of sadness flooding over him. "Thank you."

"Mm-hm."

They hung up.

Grandfather heaved another heavy sigh, and trudged off to where his bedroom laid.

A week flew by.

The PYFC [Prince Yuki Fan Club were beginning to worry about Yuki's growing depression. Saki and Arisa were blaming Kyo away for the accident, even though, in truth, it wasn't really his fault. Momiji was slightly concerned about Kyo's deep sulking, but mostly concerned about Tohru's condition, and Haru…well, Haru was Haru. He tried consoling Yuki, which helped a little bit, but not by much. Nobody could be soothed. Tohru was just too deeply involved with their lives and in their hearts for them to be comforted.

Momiji bounded down the hall in a less enthusiastic way, but still had energy enough to walk down the hall with a spring in his step. Momiji was forcing his mind onto things other than Tohru. After all, it had been about a week since the incident. It didn't do to dwell on those kind of things for too long. However, Momiji wouldn't be a hundred percent normal unless Tohru at least woke up. His mind was thinking about visiting Tohru when her friends Arisa and Saki walked by.

Momiji saw murderous intent gleam in their eyes, not directed towards him of course. Obviously, Kyo had to be the one to take the fall, be the one they were mad at. Well, they would be considering how roughly and indifferently they shoved him aside when Tohru had been freshly run over. Kyo didn't cause the truck to run her over; how could he? He couldn't push her out of the way due to exposing the curse, but no one but the Sohmas and Tohru herself knew about that. So it was both fair and unfair to blame Kyo. Momiji, being the smart boy he was, decided to leave it alone. He also presumed Tohru's friends were going to visit Tohru again and stay there for a while. If he could, Momiji would go a little later than he had originally planned.

The end of school had come sooner than expected, and when the bell rang, Arisa and Saki had book it out the door. It was obvious what they were going to do. Kyo glared at the friends' retreating backs, thinking how unfair his predicament was.

In a matter of minutes, Uotani Arisa and Hanajima Saki had arrived at the hospital. They practically tore the door off its hinges as they stormed the hospital. Quickly, the two headed towards Tohru's hospital room, anxious to visit her again. They slowed down when they reached their destination, and, respectfully, they tenderly opened the door and walked through the entrance. Closing the door silently behind them, the two made their way to their best friend's side. Silence enveloped as they stared sadly at the calm and serene looking girl.

After a while, Arisa and Saki started talking to Tohru even though they knew Tohru probably couldn't hear them. Still, it gave them an image, even if only an illusion, of comfort, that Tohru would make it. Oh how wrong they were to presume such things.

Eyelids fluttered, hands twitched, and a small moan escaped. Although, it didn't escape Arisa and Saki's attention. Quite the opposite; it _attracted_ their attention. Both girls looked at Tohru with renewed hope all over their faces. Slowly but surely Honda Tohru's eyes started to open. It was a miracle!

"Nnngh. Hana-chan, Uo-chan?" she asked, throat dry and scratchy.

"Tohru!" Arisa exclaimed in pure joy.

"Tohru-kun…" Saki replied in a slightly less calm voice than usual. Tohru gave her best friends one of her usual welcoming smiles.

"Are you okay?!" Arisa demanded, suddenly rushed with a ton of energy, and questions, too. Saki placed a hand on the blonde's shoulder to tell her to calm down. Arisa complied and turned to face Tohru again.

"I'm perfectly fine, Uo-chan," Tohru's reassuring voice said.

"You sure? You were hit pretty hard by that truck," Arisa said with concern filling deep in her being.

"Truck? Huh?" Tohru asked with a puzzled look. This startled Arisa.

"Don't you remember?"

"Remember what?" Tohru asked innocently.

"Well, that might happen with experiences like this. You're memory will come back for sure."

"Um, may I ask how long I have been out?" Tohru looked curiously at her two friends.

"About a week," Arisa replied.

"Actually, it's been eight days and thirty-six minutes," Saki declared proudly. Arisa cocked a brow at her, silently asking if this was an appropriate time to be exact.

"Oh no!" Tohru declared, bolting upright. This earned her serious pain and an ushering to lay back down by Arisa and Saki. "Grandpa will be worried."

Arisa and Saki looked at each other.

"I don't want to burden him by making him pay the hospital bill, especially since he's renovating the house!"

Arisa furrowed her eyebrows and Saki took on a concerned look.

"Tohru-kun, exactly how much do you remember?" Saki asked cautiously. Tohru was confused by Saki's concerned question.

"Well, the last thing I really remember was Grandpa telling me about the renovations and that I needed to stay at a friend's house for about four months. Oh, but I really couldn't burden either of you with —"

"Tohru, that was almost two years ago," Arisa stated seriously.

"Eh?!"

"We're third years now."

"You have also been living with the Sohma family for quite some time," Saki informed.

"Huh? You mean, Sohma Yuki-kun?" Tohru asked with a slight blush. Saki Arisa turned to exchange worried glances. Something was _definitely_ wrong.

"Yeah, the Prince, Orangey, and that Shigure guy."

A puzzled look flickered across Tohru's pale face.

"Shigure…-san? Orangey-san? Who are they?"

It was such an innocent question. Such a genuinely confused expression. Yet it was excruciatingly painful. Arisa and Saki were positively shocked. Thank god none of the Sohmas were there.

"You honestly don't remember them?" Arisa asked, disbelief in her voice.

"No. Um, should I?"

Arisa opened her mouth, but the cautionary hand on her shoulder held her back. So instead she said…

"I'll go tell a doctor you've woken up," she said, excusing herself from that room. That left Tohru to stare confusedly at Saki. Saki smiled gently and took the chair beside Tohru's bed. Tohru followed her movements in silence. No one spoke for a moment. As Tohru opened her mouth to speak, the door to the room opened.

Behind Arisa was a tall man with short black hair and glassing sitting atop his nose. He smiled and greeted Tohru politely, and Tohru replied in the same manner. After that, the doctor shooed Tohru's worried visitors out of the room. This gave them time to discuss the words that had poured out of Tohru's mouth.

"How can she not remember them? How can she not remember _Kyon_!" Arisa whispered harshly, outraged.

"She must have hit her head pretty hard,' Saki replied calmly.

"Yeah, apparently. Though it might be better for her if she _didn't_ remember Kyon. After all, it was _his_ fault that she was run over in the first place! The Prince is someone better to remember."

"She does remember him. However, she doesn't remember being his friend, being close to him. This indeed arises a problem."

"Hell yeah, it does."

"So what will we — ?"

Click! The door opened again and the doctor's face looked grim. He told the girls he needed to run some tests, and it would take awhile. They were ushered into the waiting room. Several hours later, a nurse came to tell them that the testing was done. They dashed out of the room, desperate for answers. The doctor's face still reflected unpleasantness.

"What? What is it?" Arisa asked anxiously. The doctor took in a deep breath.

"Honda-san, well, in basic terms, she hit her head pretty hard and as a result, she has amnesia. However, due to some sever damage to her brain, if she ever remembers what she's forgotten, it would strain her brain so much it could prove fatal. So I would suggest keeping things that might trigger her memories away from Honda-san because in the most likely event that she comes in contact with one of those triggers, she'll die if she remembers."

Arisa and Saki stared at the doctor in disbelief, and then looked at each other. Die? Tohru could _die_ if she remembered any of the Sohmas? No. Absolutely not. They would _not _allow this to happen. They would not allow her to die.


	5. Release

**(A/N: Yay! I'm updating again! :3 It's amazing. Well, I have to thank all those who reviewed/favorited/alerted, and especially those who have reviewed on every chapter. More than I could ever hope for. Well, I hope this chapter is to your liking. I worked hard on it. So, enjoy!)**

* * *

Operation: Revive The Princess

_Release_

* * *

Everyday for the rest of the week, Arisa and Saki sucked up all the visiting hours for Tohru, banishing the Sohmas from seeing her. The two didn't want to put Tohru, nor most of the Sohmas, through all that pain. Of course, they let Tohru's grandfather visit, no problem. They informed Grandfather what was going on and their plan to keep to Tohru safe. Grandfather agreed to help. The three of them also agreed to not tell any of the Sohmas, and, for her sake, Tohru any of this.

Friday rolled around, the day before Tohru would be released from the hospital. They had to keep Tohru preoccupied in order for their first part of the plan to follow through. Although, it also depended largely on what the Sohma family was doing as well. Saki went off to initiate that while Arisa and Tohru's grandfather stayed to keep Tohru company. It was only a couple of hours later when Saki had finished and arrived at the hospital. She traded places with Grandfather.

"Hana-chan!" Tohru greeted with an enthusiastic smile. Saki smiled pleasantly back at the hospitalized girl.

"Tohru-kun, it's good to see you've got your energy back," Saki commented.

"Uh-huh! I feel much better," Tohru chirped cheerfully.

"You should feel better than new when tomorrow rolls around," Arisa interjected. Tohru flashed Arisa a puzzled look.

"Why's that? What's happening tomorrow?" she asked innocently.

"Tomorrow you're being released from the hospital!" Arisa exclaimed, a huge grin on her face.

Tohru's eyes lit up. "That's wonderful! Now I won't burden you all by making you waste your time to visit me!"

"We're _not_ wasting our time on you, Tohru. In fact, there's nowhere we'd rather be than here visiting you," Arisa urged.

"Though you being in the hospital is not the ideal situation. If I ever come across that driver, I will make sure he regrets hitting our dear Tohru. Yes, I will make sure-"

"Don't scare the poor girl, Hanajima," Arisa chided, interrupting Saki's scheming.

More chatter ensued, but neither Saki nor Arisa hinted at their plans that would be set in motion the very next day.

* * *

Kyo kicked off his shoes, just arriving home from being at the dojo. He sighed in irritation. He was exhausted, not just physically, but mentally as well. He knew Tohru's friends were plotting something, but he couldn't figure out _anything_. Other than his death anyway, but that one was obvious. He knew that they blamed him for the accident. Kyo was tired of thinking, so he headed up the stairs.

Other than his pounding footsteps, the rest of the house was eerily silent. For once, Shigure was out and Yuki was mostly obviously at yet another Student Council thing. Over the week, Yuki had slowly begun to return to normal. Lucky bastard. Kyo grumbled as he passed down the hallway towards his room. Kyo paused when something caught his eye; the door to Tohru's room was cracked slightly, revealing secret insight into the room. Kyo changed directions.

Kyo's tanned hand gripped the edge of the wooden door, and shoved it open. His orange eyes widened. Kyo stood there for a good ten minutes, shocked. The only thing that brought the boy out of his stupor was the rattling of the front door. Quickly, Kyo slammed Tohru's bedroom door shut and dashed off to his own room. He dropped his bag on the floor, locked his door, and went to lie down on his bed.

No. That couldn't have been what he saw. It was impossible. Wasn't she still in the hospital? He must've imagined it. Yeah, that's it; it was all his frightened imagination. _Yes_…Kyo drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

The next morning, Kyo, groggy from sleep, shuffled past the other rooms the hall pertained. He paused when coming across Tohru's bedroom, but moved on. He was sure that what he observed had certainly been a hallucination, which would be understandable considering the circumstances. Kyo sighed as he passed through the living room and towards the exit, not even bothering with breakfast anymore. Another dreadful day filled with school; oh, how it sucked to live in Japan.

Little did Kyo know that things were about to take a turn for the worse.

* * *

Yet again, Arisa and Saki had ditched school. There was a good reason behind it, though. Impatiently did the friends wait for the doctor to come and release Tohru. Tohru continued to smile as the seconds ticked by. After what seemed like an eternity, the doctor finally entered via the door. Arisa anxiously jumped to her feet in greeting. The doctor smiled simply at the riled girl.

"Don't worry, I haven't changed my mind or anything of the sort," he told the blonde with a chuckle.

After that, Arisa and Saki were shooed away once again.

It wasn't too long when Arisa and Saki were summoned to fetch their precious Tohru. Tohru had been adorned in an outfit handpicked by her friends, since they had thrown away the blood silken ones without Tohru's permission. Her chocolaty brown eyes had their regular soft glow, which was outshined easily by her wide, excited smile. Her long brown hair had been tied back into a ponytail, a nice change from the all-over hair style she had kept while lying on the white hospital bed. It appeared as though nothing had changed, although that was not the case.

"Uo-chan! Hana-chan!" Tohru called out, snapping her friends out of their daze. Both girls smiled and rushed over to the nearly-recovered girl.

"Tohru!" Arisa cried in joy, attracting many a stare from the nurses in the hallway.

Immediately, conversation sparked. Everything flowed smoothly until the subject of school appeared. Now, Arisa and Saki had to be wary of their words.

"Everything's going fine, Tohru, but we'll help you catch up _after_ you've recovered enough to go back," Arisa stated with a firm, no-arguing-with-me finality to her tone.

Still, Tohru proceeded to open her mouth to protest, but Saki pressed a gentle finger to Tohru's frail, pink lips.

"Tohru-kun, Tohru-kun, the doctor's orders _must_ be followed if you want to be well again," Saki softly reminded.

Tohru bowed her head, knowing that her friend was right. Arisa sighed in relief. Suddenly, Tohru's head snapped up again, abruptly enough to make Arisa jump.

"What about work? I've missed so many days that I-"

"Tohru, Tohru, it's all right! It's all right. We took care of it. You can go back to working once you've completely recovered," Arisa assured.

Tohru didn't know what, but she could tell that there were unsaid words hanging somewhere in Arisa's statement, as if she wanted to say or add something else but couldn't. Ah, well, she mustn't press, because if Arisa wanted to tell her something, she would tell her. Though she still couldn't comprehend what Arisa wouldn't tell her. Again, Tohru mustn't press, for fear of making her friend uncomfortable.

"Let us go now, Tohru-kun. We mustn't let Grandfather wait any longer," Saki urged with a slight smile on her patient face. The other two complied, and the three of them left the hospital together.

* * *

Kyo kicked off his shoes as he walked through the entrance into his home. Yuki was beside him doing the same. Neither said a word to each other as they split ways. Shigure bounced his way over to Yuki being his normally loud, obnoxious self. Lucky Shigure, he could still act like himself, like nothing was wrong, and not worry constantly about Tohru.

Kyo let out an irritated sigh as he stomped up the steps to his room. Getting to his room, he tossed his bag onto the floor and flopped onto his bed. His orange gaze locked on the ceiling as his endless thoughts swarmed his mind. It wasn't until dinner when he was interrupted. Kyo, yelling back, declined the offer, declaring he wasn't hungry. Simultaneously, his stomach growled.

Kyo, upset about his stomach betraying him, rolled off his bed and left his room. Just as he was reaching the stairs, his eyes fell upon Tohru's room. He couldn't help but feel his hungry stomach drop. A horrible sensation, damnably related to fear, washed over Kyo's skin like ice water. Kyo shivered. So, against his instincts and better judgment, Kyo walked over to the unoccupied room.

Kyo's throat tightened as his hand clenched the handle of the door. Slowly but surely, Kyo opened the door. He stopped, his hand frozen on the door. His eyes were completely open. He wanted to cry, but he couldn't. He wanted to scream, but he couldn't. He wanted to move, but couldn't. Hell, he wanted to _die_. What Kyo saw _terrified_ him, scared him more than anything.

Gone. Everything was _gone_. Every single scrap Tohru owned had disappeared, vanished. All that was left was the furniture Shigure had bought, but everything else had been cleared out. Even the bed had been stripped of the sheets! Kyo _hadn't_ been hallucinating. This scene made it look like Tohru had never been there.

_**No!**_

In an instant, Kyo's heart accelerated, racing as he flashed out of the room and tumbled clumsily down the stairs. Kyo rushed into the living room. Trying to catch his breath, Kyo bent over, placing his hands on his knees. Yuki and Shigure looked up from their meals to cock a brow inquisitively at the strangely acting boy.

"My, my, aren't we hungry, now?" Shigure asked, assuming Kyo's problem was a ravenous hunger.

"What's wrong?" Yuki asked sensibly, smart enough to know Kyo's issues did not have anything to do with food.

"Gone," Kyo panted. Yuki lifted another eyebrow, unable to follow Kyo's thoughts enough to make sense of what Kyo was trying to get at. "Her stuff…her stuff is gone!"

Since there had ever only been one female in the household, Yuki immediately knew what Kyo meant. His silver eyes grew wide in shock. In less than a second, Yuki had flown up the stairs past Kyo to double check to see if Kyo's story was true. Yuki came back down in a daze after a few moments. Shigure looked at him expectantly.

"It's true; it's all gone," Yuki whispered. Shigure's eyes widened in surprise for a split second, and then went back to normal, thinking about the situation.

"Hm, that's odd. I mean, she's still in a coma, right?" Shigure asked, putting a finger to his chin. "Well, she could've woken up by now, though."

The concept just occurred to Kyo and Yuki, apparent by the realization in their wide eyes. Yuki then quickly dashed for the phone. Kyo just sat there with a dumbfounded look on his face. Eventually, that vaporized as another thought occurred to him.

"So, even _if_ Tohru woke up, how would that explain Tohru's missing stuff?" Kyo asked, eyes narrowing slightly.

Yuki, after making several quick calls, saved Shigure from answering, since it was apparent that he _didn't_ have an answer, by reentering the room. As he spoke, Kyo still glared at Shigure suspiciously.

"None of Honda-san's friends picked up, but her grandfather did. He has no clue where Honda-san went, since she hasn't been there since the last time she visited."

All three paused to contemplate the information, and Kyo's eyes narrowed upon a specific thought. He looked up at Yuki as he asked, "Did you call the hospital?"

Yuki shook his head, and then went back to make another phone call. A minute later, Yuki came back, silver eyes expanded in horror. He spoke the words that would've made them jump for joy but now make them freeze in confused terror.

"Honda-san was released."

Kyo jumped to his feet, instantly filled with fear induced anger. "Then where the hell is she?!"

"No one knows. It seems like Tohru-kun's gone missing," Shigure reasoned calmly.

Another era of silence reigned, everyone trying to register everything.

"I'm going to try calling again," Yuki declared abruptly, turned, and exited the room and the tense atmosphere there.

* * *

"Hm? Who was that, Grandfather?" Tohru asked, her large, innocent chocolate eyes puzzled. Her grandfather had just hung up the phone, and Tohru had just turned the corner.

Grandfather turned around and gave his granddaughter a strangely sad smile, which confused Tohru to no end, and patted her head.

"Just a salesman, Kyoko-san, just a salesman," he muttered, and he walked away. Tohru, confused even more, slowly trotted after him.

**(A/N: There it is, and I hope that it's still interesting. I can't ensure another date of updating, but I'll try to get it out as soon as I possibly can. Thank you for reading!)**


	6. Temporarily Discontinued

I know I haven't updated this story in practically year, if it hasn't been a year already. But I've lost the inspiration to write it and I've tried, but failed, to pick up the story. I might someday pick it up again, but for now this story is discontinued. This happens with a lot of stories, so you might see this happen frequently with me if I decide to put up more stories. Again, I'm really, really, _really_ sorry and thank you for having read this attempt at a story!

.::Eternity Crystal::.


End file.
